Unexpected
by gaytiredanddepressed
Summary: An assistant who works at Peabody industries is told to deliver a report to Mr. Peabody himself. Mr Peabody, being a good host invites her to stay for tea. The two hit it off and become great friends. Unknown to Peabody, Marina struggles with mental illness and low self confidence. Can Peabody potentially change Marina's life? Maybe find love on the way? HUMAN AU (reviews please!)
1. Chapter 1

It was a regular day for Marina Goodwin, wake up, go to work, get harassed, go home, go to sleep. Marina was an assistant at Peabody Industries to pay off some student loans before returning to school. Although she worked at Peabody Industries, she has never met Mr. Peabody himself. She works for a woman, Miss Adams, and helps her organize paperwork or make sure she doesn't get behind if she wanted to take off days. Miss Adams didn't like Marina from the start, she gave her dirty looks and talked down at her. Things worsened over the 4 months Marina worked at the industry. The dirty looks turned into glares that could kill and the simple condescending tone turned into blatant insults. However these insults weren't just thrown about anything and everything, no the insults were always directed at her weight. Marina was anything but thin, she was about 5'2 and 185 pounds. She had large hips, and a bit of a stomach. Miss Adams found sick humor in poking at Marina's stomach and watching her slightly curl forward and wrap her arms around her torso. Let's admit it, that woman loved to make her a life a living hell.

With a sigh, Marina stepped out of her car and walked into the large building to start her day. She was immediately stopped by Miss Adams, who was surprisingly not dressed in her business attire. Rather, she was dressed rather casually, Marina gave a puzzled look.

"I forgot to tell you yesterday, my friend and I planned a vacation to Canada for a couple weeks. Which means _you_ are in charge for taking the reports you have been typing up for me to the boss." Miss Adams said in her usual 'better than thou' tone.

"Wait, the boss? Do you mean Mr. Peabody directly?" Marina asked, growing a bit worried. Her anxiety started to kick in as her hands began to get clammy, she unconsciously began wringing the strap of her purse with her hands.

"Yes you dumb whale! So you better leave as good as an impression you can on him! Do _not_ screw this up for me." She growled as she poked a well manicured finger into Marina's face. Once she was done her rant, she flipped her long bleach blonde pony tail and walked off.

 _"_ _You have got to be kidding me..."_ Marina thought to herself as she made her way to the elevator to get to her cubicle.

As she arrived, she plopped down her purse and sat down in her chair to finish up the reports she was working on. She was nearly done as she heard someone walk up to her cubicle, She looked up. It was Amanda Rhodes, a kind co-worker who Marina would consider a friend. She shot her a small smile.

"Hey I was wondering if you were almost done with those reports so you can head them up to Mr. Peabody." Amanda said with chipper tone as she brushed a piece of long red hair behind her ear.

Marina's smile instantly faded, she looked at her report.

"Uh, yeah. I am just typing up the last of it." Marina responded.

"Great! Just head it up when it's done!" Amanda was about to walk off as Marina tapped her arm to grab her attention.

"Where do I even _go_ to give this to Mr. Peabody?" Marina asked, nervousness beginning to grow inside of her.

"Oh! Right, all you have to do is take the elevator to the top floor to get to his pent house. Just announce yourself and he will take it from there." She responded, turned around, and walked off.

Marina turned back to face her computer and typed up the last of the report. _All right let's get this over with._

She clicked print on her report and stapled all the papers together. She walked towards the elevator and began to take deep even breaths, attempting to calm herself down. The doors opened and she stepped in, pressing the button for the top floor. The trip seemed to take forever but finally the elevator stopped, the elevator made a final _ding_ sound, and the doors opened. Marina stepped in and gulped, she began to smooth down her skirt and make sure her shirt collar was straight.

"Uhm...Hello?" Marina called into the seemingly empty pent house. "I was told to bring this report up here...I am sorry if I am not supposed to be here..." she called once more. Silence. Right when she turned around and was about to leave, she heard footsteps. She turned around to see him, _the_ Mr. Peabody. He was looking down and adjusting the sleeves on his white button up shirt.

"Do excuse my delayed appearance, Ms. Ada-" He stopped his sentence as he finally looked up and saw Marina. She was wide eyed and looked flushed, her arms tightly wrapped around her torso, report in hand. "Oh, you aren't Ms. Adams." He said, slightly perplexed as he put his hands behind his back.

"N-no sir. I am her assistant, Marina. Marina Goodwin." She introduced herself, still wide eyed and about to go into a full fledged anxiety attack. Mr. Peabody's professional smile contoured into a look of worry.

"Ms. Goodwin, may I ask if you are feeling all right?" He asked, beginning to step closer.

Quickly, Marina unlatched her arm with the paper from her stomach and handed him the stapled papers. "Yes sir, sorry sir. I am just a little anxious. I am very sorry, I guess I will be giving you these and going. Have a good day."

"Leaving so soon? Why won't you stay for tea and get to know each other?"

Marina thought for a minute, she could leave and retreat to the comfort of her cubicle. Or she could stay here, and talk to one of the most intelligent beings on this planet. He wanted to get to know her. She was feeling brave and decided to stay.

"Oh...well ok." She responded quietly, looking up at him with her round grey eyes and gave a small smile.

"Fantastic! Take a seat here and I will prepare the tea."

Marina sat down and took in her surroundings, the penthouse was magnificent to say the least. She looked down at herself and grimaced, her stomach caused ripples and rolls of clothing. She gave a small groan, trying to suppress the negative thoughts. For now, at least. She, once again, swaddles herself with her arms.

Peabody came in with two tea-cups filled with green tea. The smell instantly slightly eased Marina. She took a deep breath and exhaled as her shoulders slumped. He walked over to her direction and handed her a cup. With slightly shaking hands she extended her arms from her stomach and grasped the warm cup. Noticing her shaking, Peabody sat down next to Marina and set down his cup on the coffee table. He turned to face her, a worried expression on his face.

"Are you sure you are feeling ok Ms. Goodwin?"

Marina simply gave a small shrug and put her head down. Still concerned, Peabody decided to change the subject.

"Well, why not tell me a bit about yourself?" He asked with a small smile.

Marina lifted her head slightly and looked in his eyes, she bit her lip and began talking. "Well, I used to live in Georgia and I went to college there for two years. Then I got offered at internship here in new york, which I am still doing. I stopped going to school for a year to focus on the internship and find a place to settle down and try to pay off some student loans. So I got a job here to be Ms Adams assistant." She instantly grimaced thinking about Ms. Adams, the woman who made her suffer everyday. "In January I am planning on returning to school online and maybe go back to the actual campus on my senior year."

"What are you studying in college?"

"Well, I am mainly into sequential arts. But I am also studying photography." Marina said with a full smile. She was beginning to loosen up and feel more comfortable.

Marina stayed at the penthouse for a few of hours, both of them telling small tales about themselves, and Marina beginning to come out of her shell. She told Peabody that she was into musical theatre and her and her friends did plays when she was in highschool. She would giggle at his puns and even say some herself. She was truly enjoying herself and completely brushed off any of her previous anxiety.

"I hate to cut our conversation short, but I have to pick up my son, Sherman, from school." Peabody said as he stood up.

"Oh I understand, its no problem. Thank you for inviting me to stay a while, sir." She thanked politely and stood up.

"It was my pleasure, miss."

Marina walked towards the elevator and pressed the button. To be honest, she was sad to have to leave so soon. It was very unlike her to hit it off with someone so quickly.

"Ms. Goodwin, I was wondering if you would like to come over for dinner sometime?"

Marina turned around, slightly shocked. "Oh! Well, yes! I would love too!" she said enthusiastically.

Peabody couldn't help but give a large smile at her tone of enthusiasm. "How does tonight sound? 8 o'clock?"

"That sounds wonderful, I will be here." She answered with a crooked smile. The elevator dinged, announcing its arrival. She turned and stepped in. "Until tonight, Mr. Peabody." and with that, the doors closed and she was gone.


	2. Chapter 2

Once Marina was gone, Peabody gathered his keys and coat to go pick up Sherman. He hopped into the elevator and made the long trip down to the main floor. Walking outside he was greeted by a cold gust of wind, it has been the harshest day of the fall season. It was November, which meant winter was right around the corner, and with today's weather you could tell. He hopped onto his moped and made his trip to Sherman's school.

Once he arrived, he was quickly greeted by his son running up to the vehicle with a large smile.

"Hi Mr. Peabody! I am glad you got me when you did, I was starting to get pretty cold out here." Sherman said as he began to climb into the side car, once he was secure he began to rub his hands together. Worried that he may catch a cold, Peabody took off his own coat and put it around Sherman's shoulders. He made a mental note that it was starting to get too cold to use the moped for traveling purposes and would have to switch to their car for the colder season.

"Hello, Sherman. How was your day at school?" Peabody asked as he started up the vehicle and began to drive off.

"It was great! We got to watch the teacher dissect a frog today! I took a _bunch_ of notes!" He announced as he patted his book bag for emphasis.

"That's wonderful Sherman!" Peabody said with a smile. "I assume now is as good of a time as any to tell you we are having a guest over tonight for dinner."

"Is it the Petersons?"

"Nope, guess again."

"Is it the president _this_ time?"

"Nope."

"Huh, well who is it then?" Sherman asked a little confused.

"A woman who works at the industries made a rather good impression on me this afternoon, so I decided to have her over for dinner. She is very nice, I think you will like her."

"Oh...so are you gonna be talking about boring grown up business stuff?" Sherman asked a little disappointed.

"Well, no." Peabody didn't want to admit that the reason why he invited Ms. Goodwin over for dinner was because he took an admiration for her. To say the least she has intrigued him. "She just seems like a kind woman, so I invited her over to get to know her better, and for you to meet her as well."

"Oh...Do you like her Mr. Peabody?" Sherman asked with a smug face.

"What? Of course I like her, that's why she is coming over."

"No Mr. Peabody. Do you _like_ like her?"

"Wait, you mean as in a significant other? Of course not, it's far too early in our friendship to make decisions like that."

"Whatever you say, dad."

Marina looked at the clock, it was 6 o'clock pm. Since she suspected it would take a good long while for her to decide on an outfit, she decided to get dressed now. She got off her couch and went to her closet. _Let's see here, something cute and dressy, but still kinda casual._ She rummaged through her closet throwing dresses and pants to the floor until she finally came across a burgundy knee length skirt with a cream petticoat. "Oh! I know the perfect top for this." she exclaimed to herself as she pulled out a cream short sleeve blouse with a peter pan collar.

She quickly put on her clothes and her bunched up cream socks. After retouching up her makeup and hair, she slid on her brown ankle boots, put on her coat and she was out the door.

When she got to the industries she parked her car and walked in. It was quite odd walking into the industries know she isn't here to work, rather she is here to have a good time with a new friend. She walked towards the elevator and pressed the button. It's funny to think not that many hours ago she was dreading going to the top floor. Now, she is genuinely excited. She entered the elevator and bounced on the balls of her feet. Yep, she was _really_ excited. Although she is introverted she loves making new friends, not to mention it's not everyday Mr. Peabody himself invites you to dinner. As she arrived to the top floor, the elevator made its familiar ding, signaling her arrival.

She stepped into the penthouse and saw a little boy, she assumed was Sherman, on the couch she was sitting on earlier reading a book.

"Hello, there!" She announced herself as she approached the couch. Sherman's head perked up and gave her a bright smile. He hopped off the couch and stood to face her.

"Hello Ms. Goodwin! I am Sherman!" He introduced himself, with his large smile still plastered on his face.

"Hello Sherman. It's very nice to meet you." Marina said as she bent down to be at eye level with the boy.

"It's nice to meet you too Ms. Goodwin."

"Sweetie, you don't have to call me Ms. Goodwin. Just call me Marina."

"Okay Ms. Marina! Oh, by the way! Mr. Peabody told me to tell you that he is in the kitchen and that you can meet him in there."

"Ok, thank you Sherman."

Marina stood back up and walked to the door that she supposed that lead to the kitchen. She stepped inside the kitchen and was instantly greeted by the wonderful scent of various cheeses and garlic. Peabody was currently throwing ingredients around in an amazing display, as Peabody didn't notice her she quickly thought of a comment to grab his attention.

"Wow, that smells amazing! What are you cooking?" Marina asked as her mouth practically watered at the scent.

Without looking up, he continued to put all of the ingredients into a tray. "Oh! Ms. Goodwin, nice to see you again! I am cooking a chicken and spinach pasta bake. Also known as 'fancy mac n cheese'."

"I bet it's gonna be amazing, sir."

"Indeed." He proceeded to take off his apron and chef's hat. With his back to Marina he hung up both of his accessories. "While this is cooking would you like help me set up the table?" He added as he smoothed down his shirt and rolled down his sleeves.

"Of course, sir." Marina smiled and walked closer to Peabody.

Peabody looked up at the voice and his jaw clenched slightly. Marina looked, rather fetching to say the least.

"Ms. Goodwin, may I say you look quite lovely this evening."

"Oh..." Marina blushed slightly. "No, I am nothing special. Thank you for the compliment though, sir."

Peabody was about to interject when Sherman ran in.

"Mr. Peabody is dinner almost ready? I am starving!" Sherman pleaded, he clutched his stomach for emphasis.

"Yes, I believe the oven is about to go off any minute now. While I bring out the meal, will you please help Ms. Goodwin with the table?"

"No problem Mr. Peabody!" Sherman said obediently and gave a small salute. He then walked over to the large dinner table. "Ok, so I will do the silverware and you can do the plates. I always get scared about dropping and breaking them." He explained sheepishly, he then proceeded to show Marina where the plates were and they both set the table in record time.

Just in time, Peabody brought out the meal. Its then that Marina's insecurity dawned on her. She was going to have to eat in front of them. She has always had problems with eating in front of people in fear that they would comment on her weight. Ms Adams was the one who kept this fear alive. At this point, Marina rarely eats breakfast and lunch and usually only eats a rather large dinner. She had only had an apple today on her way to work, and she really just wanted to shove her face into the delicious meal prepared for her, but she knew she couldn't. When her full plate was set in front of her, her mind played back evert negative comment she has every gotten on her weight. " _you would be so much prettier if you weren't so heavy" "no one will want to marry you like that" "do you really think you should be eating that?"_ at this point, she lost most of her appetite, but since she didn't want to be a rude houseguest she proceeded to take small bites. Not even eating half of her meal, she silently declared she was done by slightly pushing her plate away. She wanted to eat more, she was so hungry. But she couldn't, she couldn't let him think she was just a pig. She couldn't get any fatter...Unconsciously, she wrapped her arms around herself and leaned forward with her head down.

Taking notice to her odd behavior Peabody began to grow worried. _I wonder if she is ill, this is the third or fourth time she has been like this._ "Ms. Goodwin, are you feeling ok? You barely touched your food. Do you not like it?"

Silence.

Until, he heard sniffling. At this point, even Sherman paused eating and looked at Marina with worry. " _No..._ " came her voice softly, almost completely inaudible.

She tried to focus every part of her body to not start sobbing, the last thing she needed was to starting bawling in front of her boss. She felt her plan failing, as tears began to fall. Her nails began to dig into her skin as she began sobbing.

"Ms. Marina are you ok?" Sherman asked, concerned. He leaned forward to place a hand on her arm.

"I'm sorry, I have to go." She said a bit louder, in between sobs. She never looked up to see Mr. Peabody and Sherman's worried faces. She simply picked up her coat and purse, and she was gone.


	3. Chapter 3

Marina ran out of the building as fast as her legs could carry her. Rubbing tear out of her eyes, not even caring about her makeup she unlocked her car and climbed in. She didn't even start up the car before she went into another fit of sobs. "I can never talk to Mr. Peabody again. How can I after that?" she muttered as she slammed her head onto her steering wheel, earning a startling honk from her car. Deciding she should leave, she put her keys in the ignition, started up her car, and drove off.

When she arrived to her apartment she kicked off her shoes, threw on a pair of pj's and crashed on her couch. "God, I am an idiot..." she whispered as she drifted off to sleep.

Suddenly, Marina was jolted awake by her alarm on her phone. Groggily she opened her eyes and saw it was already time to get up for work. She sure was dreading this day. Sliding out of bed, she headed to the bathroom to gasp at her face. Mascara littered her whole complexion, her eyes puffy and red from the tears, and her nose was still red from crying. Grouchily, she washed her face, brushed her teeth, and put on her business clothes. Without any care, she slapped on some mascara and was out the door.

The drive to work seemed to be a blur, one minute she was in New York's morning road rage, the next she was already in her cubicle. Typing away at an email to some business she was assigned, she barely noticed Amanda by her desk.

"Hey, Marina...Are you feeling alright?"

"Oh yeah, feeling great. Just about to dig my own grave...Why do you ask?" Marina asked with a monotone voice, still typing.

"Well, how to I put this kindly..? You look awful, sweetie."

Marina snorted and gave a small nod. "I'm aware."

"What happened? Did you have a break up?"

Marina scoffed at the idea of her even being in a relationship in the first place. "More like a break _down._ "

"Meaning?"

"Meaning: I have never dated before and oh yeah, I had an emotional break down last night. Don't ask what happened, to be honest I am trying to block the memory."

"...Alrighty then. Uh, well I came her to ask if you can run something up to Mr. Pea-"

" ** _No._** " Is the only thing she said in return.

Surprised at her sudden aggressive tone, Amanda decided to push further. "Why not?"

"I can't. And I do not want to talk about what happened. Go ask Lexi to run it up or something."

Still in shock, Amanda decided to leave it. For now at least. "Whatever you say."

Only getting a 'mmhmm' in return, Amanda went to go find someone else to send on her mission.

Finally, the day was over and Marina was free to leave. On her way home she that she wanted to get some exercise.

When she got back to her apartment she plopped her purse on the ground and kicked off her heels.

"I know I need to workout more, but I can't really on a jog today since its pretty chilly..." Marina thought out loud "I guess I could figure out something to do it here..."

After a good 15 minutes of walking around her apartment and attempting to do some broken form of 'gymnastics' she ended up settling with playing Just Dance on her wii. She went to her bed room and slipped on a pair of sweatpants and an old musical theatre shirt from highschool. She placed the game in and began the 'Just Sweat workout'.

About 45 minutes into her work out she heard a knock at her apartment door. She picked up her wii remote and paused the game.

"I wonder who that could be..."

Without any second thoughts she swung open her door to only be greeted by Mr. Peabody. She struggled for words as her mouth hung agape.

"Good evening Ms. Goodwin. After last nights...events. I thought I would come to check on you since I didn't see you earlier at work today."

Finally forming a sentence, she squeaked out a "How did you find me?!"

Peabody's eyes slightly widened as his usual confident smile turned into a sheepish look as he averted his gaze from Marina's. He rubbed his neck and gave a nervous chuckle. "Well, after what happened last night I got worried when I didn't see you earlier. So since we keep files on all of our employee's addresses and contact information I decided to pay you a visit."

"Why didn't you just call me?"

"I suppose that would of been simpler, wouldn't it?" Peabody said as he locked his eyes with Marina's.

She gave him a small laugh and smile until it completely faded away as a look of realization dawned upon her.

"I am so sorry! I just finished exercising, I must look horrible! Come in, I will take a quick shower and we can talk more. Help yourself to anything in the kitchen. I will try to be fast." Marina said as she gently pulled Peabody by his arm into her home an shut the door. Once he found a seat on her couch she ran to her room to grab clothes to change into and headed to the bathroom door. "Give me 10 minutes, tops."

"Take your time. No need to rush, I'm not going anywhere." Peabody chuckled at Marina's energetic behavior.

She gave him a thumbs up and closed the door. Peabody heard the sound of water turning on. Twiddling his thumbs, he looked around at Marina's apartment. It was a decent sized home for one person. It was painted a light blue and had a large window that over looked the city. She had many pictures hanging around her house. Some being drawings, he assumed were her own, others being photos of Marina and people he assumed were friends and family. One photo in particular caught his eye. In the picture, there were two girls and a boy. They all appeared to be about 17. The girl on the left had long strawberry blonde hair, green eyes, and cat eye glasses. In the middle was a boy, he had shaggy brown hair and deep brown eyes. Lastly, the girl to the right had light purple hair cut in a pixie cut, fringe covering most of her grey eyes.

" _That must be Marina when she was younger_..." Peabody thought.

He was jolted out of his thoughts when he noticed the water had turned off. However, rather than the expected silence he heard someone...humming. It was a tune that was quite familiar, but he couldn't quite place his finger on. Peabody closed his eyes and concentrated on the tune, he had a content smile on his face and held his hands behind his back.

"Sir? Where are you?"

Peabody snapped his eyes opened and saw Marina round the corner to see him looking at her photos. Her short brown hair was damp and the usual curls atop of her head were scraggily and partially in her face. She was wearing a very large sweater and a pair of ripped jeans with paint splatters all over them.

Marina walked up to him and smiled when she realized what photo he was looking at.

"Ah, I see you found my favorite photo already, sir." Marina beamed up at Peabody. "That was me and my friends our sophomore year of highschool. That was the year we did "Chicago" for our local theatre. That picture was actually taken after one of our rehearsals. We went to the park and walked around and talked about our future. My mom came to pick me up, but snapped this photo before I left. It has been one of my fondest memories ever since then." Marina was smiling and her eyes had a far away look in them. "Damn, I really miss those two."

"When was the last time you saw them?

"Oh, jeez. Probably our graduation party. Not long after that I headed to college. I still text them and sometimes we skype. But I haven't seen them in the flesh for years." Marina sighed. "Time sure does fly, sir."

"Ms. Goodwin, you do realize you don't have to call me sir? Right?"

Marina's smile changed into a confused look. "Really? Then what shall I call you?"

"Well, you can call me Mr. Peabody. But I would prefer if you called me simply Peabody." He said as he looked down and gave her a smug smile.

Marina could feel her face getting slightly warm. "Well then you can just call me Marina, then!"

Peabody chuckled. "It's even."

 **(hey everyone! Thank you for all of the views so far! and thanks to my two followers on my story already! That's super cool you guys are enjoying so far! I would really appreciate it if you guys would leave me a review. Tell me how you like everything so far! Until next time! See ya!)**


	4. Chapter 4

The two of them stared at each other for a while, exchanging smiles. Marina could feel her cheeks burning at this point. It was nice that he actually cared enough to come visit her, it was sweet that he was worried.

"Thank you for coming to visit me to today. My day was going awful until you showed up." Marina said softly as she averted her gaze from his. "It means a lot you were concerned enough to come see me. I haven't had a friend like that since I moved here."

"It's no problem at all, Marina. You seem like a lovely lady and it wouldn't be gentleman like to not check on you after last night's debacle." Peabody said gently as he smiled down at Marina. "Speaking of last night. Do you mind telling me what was wrong?"

Marina scratched the back of her neck "Uh, well...about that. You see-" She clamped her mouth shut, what was she supposed to say to him? _Oh you know, just crippling self hate has led me to go into a downward spiral of my worsening depression. Not to mention, one of your employees happens to emotionally torture me every time I go to work just because of my body type. But it's ok, no big deal, I just want to be dead every time I wake up in the morning. Great idea Marina, have him pity you. Lovely. It's not that he even cares right? He is just trying to be polite, but I am sure he doesn't care..._

"Marina, I am a father and I know when someone has something on their mind. What's wrong?" He pushed further.

"I don't know."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that my emotions are constantly conflicting and I haven't been well these past few months. I mean I have never been well but recently I have been _really_ unwell. I just can't believe I am telling you these things because only my closest friends know this side of me! But...I just feel like I can trust you. One part of my brain says to tell you everything and maybe we could become close and you could help me. But my other half says that you would think I am pathetic and leave and I would be sad and alone and-" Her sentence was cut off by a sob, she didn't even realize she had tears running down her cheeks until now. "I'm scared..."

Peabody just watched as she sobbed, completely at lost for words. He felt like he needed to do something, but he didn't know _what._ Which, of course, frustrated him to no end. He was Mr. Peabody for Christ's sake! He _always_ knows what to do. But then someone starts crying, especially a lovely woman like Marina, and his mind goes blank.

"I'm sorry, I understand if you don't want to talk to me anymore. To be frank, I don't know why you wanted to talk to me in the first place."

Those words made his heart ache. There were so many reasons why he wanted to talk to her, some he wasn't aware of himself. Without even thinking he stepped closer to her and wrapped his arms around her. Marina stiffened for a moment, obviously shocked, but melted into the hug. She wrapped her arms around his lower torso and buried her face in his chest. Now it was Peabody's turn to be shocked, his stomach did flips and he could feel his heart speed up slightly. _Why am I feeling this way?_

Marina's crying, becoming less violent, began to diminish into small hiccups. However, her arms still remained wrapped around Peabody's waist like a lifeline. She took in a deep inhale in attempt to even out her breathing. Finally, she released him from her tight grip. She looked up at his emerald eyes and smiled.

Peabody smiled in return and brought a hand down to her face to wipe a few tears off her cheeks. He noticed that her face turned a slight pink color, but brushed it off as a side effect of her crying.

They continued to look at each other until the silence was disturbed by Peabody's phone ringing. Removing the phone from his pant pocket he saw that it was his son, Sherman. He quickly accepted the phone call.

"Hello, Sherman. Is everything alright?"

"Hi, Mr. Peabody!" Sherman said happily on the other end. "Ms. Peterson was wondering if she needed to take me home or if you were going to pick me up."

"Oh! Yes, please tell Ms. Peterson I will be picking you up."

"Ok! I will see you soon, Mr. Peabody! Bye!" Sherman said and hung up.

"I am so sorry, Marina. I am afraid I forgot Sherman was at his friend's house tonight. So I believe I will have to leave now. I will see you tomorrow at work!" Peabody said as he began walking towards Marina's apartment door.

"I am afraid I won't be seeing you tomorrow. Saturday is my day off." Marina said softly as she walked behind Peabody.

"Oh, I understand. That is ok. I will see you when you come back to work then." He said, slightly disappointed, and opened her door. He was about to walk out and leave when Marina began to speak.

"Well, maybe...maybe you, me and Sherman can go out to eat tomorrow night! Then we can come back to my house and just relax. You guys are welcome to stay the night as well." She said with a large smile. Peabody could see her eyes twinkle with excitement.

"Well, I wouldn't want to intrude. However, I will take you up on that offer to go out to dinner. Where would you like to go?"

"It's no intrusion at all! I would love to have you two over, I think it would help us to get to know each other better. I know its may sound rather weird, but I think it would be fun! We can watch movies and we can have warm drinks! It will great!" Marina said with a giggle. "Oh, and don't worry about the restaurant location! I know the perfect place."

"Well ok, Marina. I will tell Sherman tonight to get his things ready. What time would you like to have us over?"

"Come over around Five o'clock that way we can drop your stuff off here. Then we will head to the restaurant!"

"I look forward to it. I will see you tomorrow." Peabody said with a smile.

"See ya tomorrow, Peabody! Thanks for everything." She replied with a soft smile. She closed the door and sat on her couch. Leaning back she exhaled a sweet sigh. _I guess today turned out ok after all._ She then headed to her room to put on her pajamas and hopped into her warm bed as she drifted off into a sweet sleep.

* * *

Peabody arrived at The Peterson's home and walked up to the door. He raised a hand to knock at the door. With three rhythmic knocks he heard footsteps walking to the door. The door opened to reveal Ms. Peterson, she gave him a sweet smile.

"There you are, Peabody! We thought you would never get here!" She said with her normal cheery tone.

"Forgive me Ms. Peterson, but I was at a friend's house tonight and completely lost track of time." Peabody said rather sheepishly but kept his confident smile.

"It's no problem, come in! It's pretty chilly out tonight." She continued with her chipper voice as she began to walk up her stairs. "I will go get Sherman for you, I am sure he is exhausted." She continued to climb the stairs and disappeared around a wall. Quicker than expected, red hair peaked from around the corner as Sherman slugged down the stairs. Obviously drowsy from his long day, he let out a small yawn and lifted his glasses to rub his eyes.

Peabody went to lift Sherman off of his feet and made his way to the front door. He thanked Ms. Peterson for letting Sherman to stay and walked out to his car. Thankfully, he made the switch from his moped to his car for the colder months. He buckled Sherman into the back seat and climbed into the drivers side. He started up the car and turned on the heat to warm up the car.

By this point, Sherman was out, his head laying on the seatbelt caused his glasses to lay askew on his face. Peabody smiled softly and made his way home.

 **(hey you guys! sorry this took a while for me to type up. I have been kinda stressed out recently, but I finally got to type this up! Thanks for the kind reviews so far, they have been very encouraging! I am hoping to get another chapter up tonight since I am feeling inspired. See ya!)**


	5. Chapter 5

Marina woke up to the sun shining through her window and the low sound of her radio quietly playing in the background. Blinking a few times to get her eyes to focus she sat up and stretched. Once her back gave a few satisfying pops she let her shoulders slump as she sat in her bed gathering her thoughts. She took a few minutes to take in the peace she was feeling, the morning sun on her face, her bed still warm from sleeping. Plus, for the first time in a long while, she felt rested and ready for the day.

Marina swung her legs over the bed, and shivered slightly when her feet made contact with the cold floor. She made her way to her bathroom and proceeded to remove her clothes. Deciding she didn't want to ruin her good mood, she decided not to look in the mirror. She adjusted the knobs on her shower and climbed in. The hot water tapping against her skin caused her to sigh and give a small smile. Grabbing her shampoo bottle she began humming the tune to "Good Morning Baltimore" from hairspray. She squirted the product into her hand and worked her hair to a thick lather and rinsed. Switching her shampoo for conditioner she applied a generous amount onto her head and let it set as she washed her body with lavender body soap. Rinsing herself for the final time she turned off the shower and stepped out.

Wrapping a towel around her body and smaller one around her head she began brushing her teeth and then washing her face. Still remaining in her towels she made her way to her bedroom to choose her clothing for the day. After a short debate, she settled with her favorite mustard yellow sweater and boyfriend jeans. Quickly, she dried herself off and got dressed. Once her clothes were on, she ruffled her wet hair in hopes it would lay properly. She brushed it off and proceeded to dust on her concealer, fill her eyebrows, and put on mascara.

Satisfied with her appearance she decided to head out to grab a small breakfast. She slipped on a pair of boots, grabbed her purse and keys, and was out the door.

* * *

Peabody has been up for a couple hours now, for most of the time he was sitting in the living room reading a book. Looking at his watch he decided it was good time to begin cooking breakfast and wake up Sherman to begin getting ready for their night at Marina's.

Sherman is awakened by the smell of pancakes and the sound of sizzling bacon. He completely brushes off any past sleepiness and jumps out of bed and bolts to the kitchen.

Peabody is startled to here rushing footsteps and the sound of the kitchen door being slammed open. Noticing it was only his son, he gave a light chuckle and proceeded making himself and Sherman's plates.

"Well good morning! Up already?" Peabody said with a teasing tone.

"Good morning! So what's for breakfast Mr. Peabody?" Sherman said with a large smile.

"Well since we have a big night planned, I figured I would make a more simple breakfast. So we are having blueberry pancakes, bacon, and orange juice."

"Big night? I didn't know we were doing anything tonight!"

"Oh right, you fell asleep in the car last night. Well, Miss Marina invited us out to dinner tonight and for us to stay over at her home. So once you are done with your breakfast I want you to pack your things and get ready for the day."

"We are sleeping over at Miss Marina's house?!" Sherman said with a huge smile.

Peabody chuckled again, his son was just full of energy this morning. "Yes we are, I assume you are ok with that?"

"Am I ever! I love Miss Marina, I didn't get to talk to her much but she is really nice and seems really fun!" Sherman said as he began to shovel his food down.

Before Peabody even began his meal, Sherman was already done and was running to his room to get ready.

* * *

Once Marina was done her breakfast she never went back home, she figured that she had a few hours to kill until Peabody and Sherman were coming over. She went store to store simply grazing over the beautiful clothes she could only dream of wearing. She looked at her phone to check the time. It was 3:30, she decided to go home and maybe watch some television until her friends came over.

Once she was home she tossed her keys and her purse onto her couch. She sat on her couch, pondering what to do next. "I guess I can set up some cots for Peabody and Sherman...maybe set some movies out...yeah, that's a good idea." Marina said to herself. She walked to her closet and pulled out every blanket, cover, and pillow in her possession. It got pretty chilly in her home at night and she wanted to make sure everyone was comfortable and happy. She placed two of her comforters on the floor to make the ground more comfortable. Marina proceeded to place two pillows on the ground and folded two fleece blankets next to her makeshift bed. She then folded two blankets to place on the arm of the couch and placed a pillow against them.

Satisfied with her work, she went to her cabinet that held all of her DVDs. She figured some Disney movies would be appropriate for Sherman. She pulled a few Disney films off of the shelf and placed them on her TV stand. Once she was happy with her preparation she checked her phone once again. She sighed, only four o'clock. Marina sighed and flopped onto the couch.

Marina was jolted out of sleep by knocking on her door. She didn't even realize she had fallen asleep. Marina stood up and yawned as she walked towards her door. When she open it, she couldn't help but smile to be greeted by Peabody and Sherman.

"Hi Miss Marina! Are you ready for tonight?" Sherman greeted with a large smile.

"You bet I am! Why don't you bring your things inside before we head off to eat?" Marina said with a friendly smile. She held open the door and stepped to the side, silently urging them to walk into her home.

Sherman immediately ran in bursting with excitement. He has never spent the night at anyone's home before other than his own. So obviously, it was very exciting for the young boy. He spotted the previously set up cot and placed his things next to it. Once everything was placed on the floor he turned on his heel to get a full view of the new location.

"Your home is very lovely Miss Marina!" Sherman said with his huge smile.

Marina smiled "Thank you Sherman, however it is no where nearly as impressive as your home."

"But I like your home! It's nice and blue and cozy." He protested, as he flopped onto the couch for emphasis.

Marina giggled in response "Well, I am glad you think so. So, are you two ready to head out?" She asked as she went to go find her car keys and purse.

"I believe we are both ready, Marina. However, may I recommend that you grab a jacket before we head out? It is quite chilly tonight and I wouldn't want you getting ill." Peabody said with his hands behind his back.

Marina's face lit up with realization "Oh! You are right Peabody! It is pretty cold out tonight, huh?" She quickly walked to her room to grab her jacket.

Sherman looked up at his father with a knowing grin. "You _do_ like her." he said teasingly.

Peabody looked down, shocked at his son. "What? I was just trying to be friendly!" He exclaimed quietly. Sherman only rolled his eyes playfully and decided not to argue as he heard Marina walking back towards the living room. She reemerged wearing a long brown coat.

"Alright guys! Let's get going!" She said happily as she skipped towards the front door. She opened it and held it to let her guests out first. Once they both exited, she closed the door behind herself and locked it. She led Peabody and Sherman down the stairs and out to her car. She unlocked it and climbed in, once everyone was in and buckled she started up the car.

"Do you guys mind if I play some music? It doesn't have any swear words, I promise." She asked, mostly directed towards Peabody.

"I don't mind at all. Do you Sherman?" Peabody asked, twisting slightly to see behind him.

"I don't mind!" Sherman said enthusiastically.

"Ok, good I just wanted to make sure. Don't hesitate to ask me to turn it off if you don't like it." She said as she clicked a button on her dashboard.

Marina backed out of her parking spot and made her way to the road, as she did the song started. The intro started with some techno beeping before someone started singing. _"_ _You say things with your mouth_ _Cobwebs and flies come out I hear a second voice behind your tongue somehow"_ The beat started to pick up as the singing continued. " _Luckily I can read your mind Flies and cobwebs unwind They will not take you down They will not cast you out."_

Peabody couldn't help but notice that Marina was mouthing the words to the song as she tapped her hands on the wheel to the beat of the song.

 _"_ _Won't you stay alive_

 _I'll take you on a ride_

 _I will make you believe you are lovely."_

The beat began to pick up again and Marina's head began to bob to the beat. Peabody cracked a small grin and admired Marina's content smile.

* * *

They arrived to the restaurant where they would be spending their dinner. It didn't have an establishment name other than the simple neon light sign that spelled out _Café._ It was quaint, warm, and welcoming. The trio walked inside to be greeted by an older woman with greying hair tied into a messy bun. She turned around at the sound of the bell that was triggered by the group walking through the door. Her face instantly lit up at the sight of Marina.

"Well, Miss Marina! It has been a while since I have seen you last. How are you dear?" The woman said with a warm, motherly smile. She came up and hugged Marina tightly.

"I am doing very well, Miss Lynn. My friends and I wanted to go out to eat tonight and I figured what's better than The Café?"

"Sweetheart, please introduce me to your friends." Miss Lynn said.

"Well, this young man is Sherman." Marina said as she placed her hand on Sherman's head. Miss Lynn gave the same motherly smile to Sherman as she knelt down to get a better look at him.

"Well, aren't you just adorable?" she said kindly.

"Thank you, Miss Lynn." Sherman responded with a small smile.

"You are welcome, Sweetie." Miss Lynn finished as she stood back up to look at the two adults.

"And this" Marina began as she placed a hand on Peabody's shoulder "Is Mr. Peabody."

Miss Lynn gave a small smirk "Well you two are just the _cutest_ couple. You did a good job with this one Marina, he is very handsome."

Marina's face started burning as she slightly panicked. She started waving her hands as she shook her head.

Miss Lynn only started laughing at both of their reactions. Marina was covering her face with her hands and Peabody who was obviously blushing decided to look at the wall to his left that was _oh so interesting_ all of the sudden.

"Ok, I see how it is. Why don't we get y'all a table and something to eat?"

"Y-yes, thank you Miss Lynn." Marina said still shaken up as she walked towards a booth.

Miss Lynn gave her a sly wink as she walked back to the kitchen to get some menus. She quickly returned with three menus in hand. "So can I get you all started on something to drink?"

* * *

The three finished up their meals and after a short argument about who would pay, Peabody being the winner, they thanked Miss Lynn for the meal and they left.

The drive home was relaxed and quick. Once the group reached Marina's apartment they all exited the car and made their way upstairs.

"Ok, so if anyone wants to take a shower just tell me. If not I am gonna go wash my face so we can start watching some movies." Marina said as she pointed back towards the bathroom. Both guests declined politely explaining they both took baths before they came over. Marina nodded slightly and excused herself for a second so she could wash her face and change into her pajamas.

After about three minutes of waiting for Marina to come out of the bathroom, she finally reappeared with a oversized t-shirt and a pair of fleece pajama pants.

"I am expecting you two to join my pajama party. So why don't you two get changed? One of you can take the bathroom and the other can take my room." She explained as she ran her fingers through her short curls at the top of her head.

"I call the bathroom!" Sherman exclaimed as he gathered his pajamas and ran towards the bathroom and closed the door.

"Well I guess that means you get my room, sorry if it's a bit messy" Marina said with an embarrassed smile.

"It's quite alright, I don't mind." Peabody reassured. Marina smiled faintly and closed the door. Before he even started to undress, Peabody automatically took notice to the decor of the room. There were much more drawings than there were in the living room. There was a rather large window with pink sheer curtains with a few cacti on the windowsill. However, what caught Peabody's eye was the many stuffed toys on Marina's bed. A large selection of very colorful different characters. He couldn't help but chuckle at Marina's childlike infatuation with stuffed toys.

After getting changed into a simple white t-shirt and red flannel pajama pants, Peabody walked back into the living room. He was surprised to see no one was to be seen.

"Sherman? Marina?" Peabody called.

"In the kitchen!" Sherman yelled from around a corner. Peabody followed the sound of his son's voice to come across Sherman and Marina sitting at a small table with three chairs. They were both sipping at their mugs filled with a steaming beverage. Peabody, cleared his throat to subtly announce his presence. Marina's head shot up with a smile.

"Hey Peabody! We made some hot chocolate if you want some." She said with her usual crooked smile.

"I would like that, thank you."

"No problem." Marina said as she stood up from her chair to get a mug and pour her friend something to drink. Once she did she handed him the mug and sat down at her chair. She patted the seat by her indicating she wanted him to sit there.

"So, what movie do you guys want to watch first?" Marina asked.

"Do you have Peter Pan?" Sherman asked excitedly.

"Of course I do! Is that what you wanna watch?" She answered as she took a sip from her mug.

"Yes please! I watched it at my friend Penny's house and I love it!" Sherman explained as he took a large gulp of hot chocolate.

"Well once we finish our drinks we can head out to the living room to watch it."

* * *

Once the trio finished their drinks they all went into the living room. Marina placed the DVD into the DVD player and grabbed the remote. They all sat down in the couch, leaving Marina in the middle.

The movie began and the title music began playing. Both Peabody and Sherman noticed Marina's humming to the music and looked at each other and smiled. Sherman decided to get more comfortable and snuggled into Marina's arm. Taking notice to his actions, Marina lifted her arm and allowed him to snuggle into her side as she wrapped her arm around his shoulders. Sherman smiled at the affection and nuzzled into her soft t-shirt and sighed at her body heat with contentment.

About halfway into the film, Marina noticed that Sherman's breathing has slowed down significantly. She looked down to see that he was slightly curled into a ball and sound asleep. She smiled warmly and affectionately played with his hair.

"Uh, Peabody." Marina whispered, trying not to wake Sherman or startle Peabody.

"Yes? Is everything alright?" He asked quietly as he turned to face her.

"Everything is fine, it's just that Sherman fell asleep and I was wondering if you wanted me to lay him down on the cot I made." She explained softly.

Peabody leaned forward to see Sherman cuddled against Marina's side, he smiled as his heart practically melted at the adorable sight. "Yes, you may. But not before I get a picture." He said playfully as he grabbed his phone that was sitting next to him. He made sure the phone wasn't on flash as he didn't want to wake Sherman. He snapped a few photos and gave a satisfied nod. "Ok, now you can move him." He said with a smile.

Marina giggled at this more family oriented side of Peabody she was beginning to see. She gently picked up Sherman with one arm as she knelt down to pull down the blankets on her makeshift 'bed'. She softly placed him on the covers that cushioned the floor and covered him up underneath the two blankets she laid out earlier. Sherman snuggled into the blankets and curled up as he gave a light sigh. Content with her work, Marina stood back up and sat on the couch.

"I just want to say I had a lovely evening, and I want to thank you for inviting us over tonight." Peabody said gently as he looked at Marina fondly.

"It's no problem, I really enjoy being with you two. You are so kind to me, and Sherman is just a sweetie." She said as she gave a small yawn. The movie was almost over, and Marina could feel herself nodding off. She was almost completely asleep when Peabody heard her softly mutter "Goodnight, sleep tight." Her head was leaning against the back of the couch and tilted onto her shoulder. Unsure of where Marina was planning to sleep, he decided to turn off the television and grab the blankets that were previously laid out by Marina. He grabbed one as he wrapped it over most of Marina's body. He lifted up her legs and placed them gently on the couch so they were bent. Debating for a while, he decided to scoot her over closer to him and wrap his arm around her to allow her head to rest on his shoulder. He then placed the second, much larger, blanket over both himself and Marina's legs.

He couldn't help but smile as he felt his heart get warm at the feeling of holding Marina. He watched as the covers wrapped around her raised and fell due to her steady and deep breaths. Peabody laid his head on Marina's, allowing her head to nuzzle into his neck. He then fell into a peaceful slumber.

 **(hey everybody! I am gonna be honest and say this is my favorite chapter so far. it's just so dang fluffy! it's also my longest chapter, which is pretty awesome. these follows and reviews are amazing and honestly are what encourage me to keep writing. you will probably see another chapter by tomorrow. By for now!)**


	6. Chapter 6

Marina's eyes fluttered open to the sun shining through her large windows. She sucked in a deep breath and was about to fall back asleep when she noticed she felt oddly...warm. It was then that she noticed she was sleeping on _someone._ Her eyes shot back open and saw that she was snuggled into someone's chest. She looked up to see the sleeping face of Peabody, his glasses askew on his face from his night's rest. Marina breathed a sigh of relief as the previous night's events rushed back to her. However, the pit of her stomach dropped at the thought that she might be squishing Peabody with her weight. As she was beginning to become aware of their sleeping position she noticed that she was almost completely on top of him, their legs slightly intertwined, and Peabody's arm was draped over the small of her back. She felt her heart beginning to pound quickly as she quickly yet reluctantly got off of him. She sat at the opposite end of the couch, watching as he slept. She realized that she wasn't getting anymore sleep and decided to get up and make breakfast. Before she left to the kitchen, she reorganized the blankets so that they fully covered Peabody's form. She then proceeded to remove his glasses and place them on the small stand next to the couch. Satisfied with her handy work, she gave a small nod and walked to her kitchen.

Marina was never the best cook, she could bake cookies and make a pretty good pizza, but that was about it. However, she wasn't going to let her lack of experience make her guests go hungry. She decided to go simple and aim for a meal she was fairly experienced with. Her grandmother used to make a dish called 'eggs in a basket' which is basically just eggs and toast. Figuring that this was the only meal she could prepare at the time without destroying her kitchen, she settled with that meal. She walked to her room to grab her phone to play some music. Obviously since her phone didn't have the best speaker, she figured it wouldn't wake her guests. She turned on her favorite playlist and let it play.

The first song began with a short piano intro that led to a steady beat of a drum. _"_ _He stays home from work this time_ _He never really told his wife He never really told a lie but this time he decides that it's alright."_ As usual Marina began singing along to the familiar tune.

"It's alright~" She sang softly as she cut a small hole in the piece of toast she was cooking. Once the bread began to brown, she cracked an egg in the middle of the toast flipped it. "No one really knows his mind and no one knows behind his eyes. The man deserves a medal But he's never really won a prize before. He goes to lock the door."

"He is falling in love He knows it's enough And the world looks down and frowns" Marina began to sing a bit louder as she used the spatula as a pretend microphone.

Peabody was woken up by a voice that was...singing? He slowly sat up and rubbed his eyes. He reached for his glasses that were usually at his bed side table but remembered he was at Marina's house. He then also remembered that they fell asleep together, and that the singing was Marina's voice. He felt his heart slightly flutter, there was something so comforting and warm about having her around and he couldn't quite place his finger on it. Eventually finding his glasses, he walked towards the sound of the singing in the kitchen. When he peered through the doorway he smiled at the sight of Marina happily cooking and swaying in place as she sang.

"Get up Johnny boy, get up Johnny boy, Get up 'cause the world has left you lying on the ground. You're my pride and joy, you're my pride and joy. Get up Johnny boy because we all need you now." Marina sang as she focused on her cooking.

The shy girl Peabody knew was beginning to come out of her shell and show her true colors, and without even knowing it, Peabody was falling for her.

With a small spin, Marina ended the chorus. "We all need you now.~" While she was spinning, she caught notice of a figure standing in the doorway. She screeched lightly and covered her face in embarrassment. "I'm sorry! Did I wake you? I know I probably looked really stupid dancing and all. I'm sorry." Marina repeated as she turned to hide her blushing face.

"Marina, you didn't wake me up. I just happened to wake up on my own, but I couldn't help but listen to your singing. When I got up to find you I walked in on your little concert. You looked so happy, I didn't want to interrupt you." Peabody said gently as he walked into the kitchen. He grabbed Marina's shoulders lightly and turned her to face him. She slowly looked up, he ears and nose still slightly red from blushing.

"Ha well, I know I looked pretty dumb doing whatever I was doing." Marina her head slightly.

"No I didn't-" Peabody paused suddenly. "Do you smell something...burning?"

Marina's eyes widened as she twisted out of Peabody's grip. She muttered a curse as she ran to her oven and turned it off. Frantically fanning the smoke away she turned on the stove fan in a desperate attempt to clear the smoke. "I am so sorry. I have been screwing up all morning, huh?" Marina said laughing herself. "I am really sorry for ruining your breakfast. I was just trying to be a good host." She picked up the pan and grimaced at the burnt egg and toast.

"I would't fret over it, Marina. If you want, I can help you make a meal."

"Yeah, that sounds good. I still have some eggs so we could make omelets."

"Sounds good to me! Do you have anything else to put in the omelets? Like tomatoes, peppers, mushrooms...?"

"Ok, so since I don't cook much I don't have that many ingredients. However!" She walked over to her fridge and opened it. "I have, tomatoes, three different kinds of shredded cheese which to be honest I didn't even know I purchased... Oh! And I have some spinach." She grabbed all of the said items and quickly shuffled to the table to lay the ingredients on the table.

"I think we can work with that. Do you have any salt and pepper?"

Marina looked to the side and tapped her chin in thought. "I _think_ so. Lemme try to find it." She walked to her cupboard and opened it. Quickly, she spotted the desired condiments, but of course they are on the highest shelf. She gave an exasperated sigh. "How the heck did I even get these up there." She muttered as she continued to climb onto her counter and balanced on her knees. She stretched her arm to reach the containers.

At the time, Peabody was busy preparing and washing the ingredients for the omelets. Therefore, Marina's shenanigans were going completely unnoticed.

Marina let out a groan, she was just too short, just by a little bit. _Dang it._ "Uhm Peabody?"

"Yes?"

"Uh, can I borrow the spatula?"

"Now, why would you-" Peabody stopped his sentence once he saw Marina clinging onto the cupboard and kneeling on her counter. "What are you doing up there?"

"Uhm, obviously trying to get the salt and pepper. Can you please hand me the spatula I just need it to knock the salt and pepper down."

"Marina, please get down from there. I don't want you getting hurt."

"Calm down, it'll be alright. Ya know, if you hand me the spatula." After waiting for a few seconds and seeing that Peabody was probably not gonna help her unless she got down, she decided to climb down.

Peabody visibly let out a worried breath. "Ok let me get those salt and pepper shakers." He continued to reach for the containers with ease by standing on his toes.

Marina never noticed how much taller he was than her until now. "Well ok then. Let's get cooking."

* * *

Marina and Peabody finished cooking and were putting the omelets on dishes right when Sherman walked in.

"Good morning Sherman! How are you this morning?" Marina asked in a chipper tone.

"I am doing good." He responded drowsily.

The three of them proceeded to eat their meals and talk about their day's plans. In the middle of their conversation, Peabody received a phone call. Without looking at the caller ID, he answered it.

"This is Mr. Peabody how may I help you?" He said in his usual smooth voice.

"Peabody! It's Patty!" She greeted loudly. Peabody gave a small wince and moved the phone away from his ear slightly.

"Hello, Mrs. Peterson. How are you this morning?"

"I am doing great actually! But there is a reason why I called. I was wondering if you and Sherman would like to get together with us for dinner tonight!"

"That sounds lovely Mrs. Peterson. However, I am currently at a friend's home right now. So I am-" Peabody was cut off my Marina tapping on his shoulder.

She whispered "Peabody if you want to see your friends tonight, you can see your friends. You don't have to stay with me all day."

"Actually, why don't you and your family come over tonight to our home to meet my friend."

Marina's eyes slightly widened as she turned to look at Peabody in shock. Her heart started pounding as she began to panic silently.

"That sounds wonderful Peabody! I will see you and your friend tonight. Bye now!" With that the call ended.

"Why did you do that? I don't do well with gatherings, or meeting people, or people in general."

"Marina, don't be silly. Everything will be fine, the Petersons are good friends of mine, they will love you."

Marina pouted slightly and sighed in defeat. "Fine."

"Lovely. I will help you clean up everything from this morning and last night. However, once that is done Sherman and I will have to leave to get ready for tonight."

"Nah, it's alright. You guys didn't really leave a mess. You two can just go and I will see ya later. What time should I come to your house?" She asked as she picked up the plates and put them in the sink.

Peabody walked out of the kitchen and began gathering his son's and his own belongings. "Around 7:30 would be fine." he called from the living room.

"Ok. Is this a formal or casual event?"

"Whatever you deem fit. You will look dashing either way. I will see you later, Marina."

"Bye Miss Marina!" Sherman called, and with that the door slammed.

Marina became all giddy _"You will look dashing either way."_ She sighed dreamily, he was just so charming.

* * *

It was 6:30 and all Marina has done all day was sit on her couch and listen to music. She figured now was a good enough time as any to get ready, so she sluggishly pulled herself off the couch and went to her room. Since Peabody didn't specify what kind of clothes to wear, she just went for her usual casual style.

She tossed a blue oversized sweater, white polo and a pair of jeans on her bed. With a shrug she rummaged through her closet to pull out her brown oxfords. She laid out her outfit neatly and went to go wash up. Once she was all fresh and clean she proceeded to put on her foundation, light eyeshadow and mascara. Giving a small shrug, she went to put on her clothes. Once everything was on and ready, she looked over herself in her body length mirror, popped her collar and did a funny pose. Giggling at herself she made her way back to her living room to grab her phone. 7:15. "Good enough for me."

After a good 20 minutes of road rage and honking, Marina finally made it to the industries. She parked her car and made her way inside the building and to the very familiar elevator. Clicking the button for the penthouse she hummed to herself as she made her ascent to her friend's home. The elevator made it's familiar ding to announce it's arrival. She was greeted by a unfamiliar family sitting on one couch and Peabody and Sherman on the other. She stepped out of the elevator and into the main room of the penthouse. No one has noticed her yet and she was too awkward to make herself known. She continued to stand awkwardly by the couches as she shifted her weight from one leg to another. Finally, Peabody noticed her and gave her a huge grin.

"Ah, Marina! Amazing to see you finally arrived!" He got up to lead her back to the couch him and Sherman were sitting on.

"Yeah, there was some pretty bad traffic" She said, voice slightly shaking.

"Everyone, this is my friend Marina." Peabody said smoothly as he put his hands firmly on her shoulders. She felt a shiver run down her back at his touch.

Marina gave a small wave and crooked smile.

"Oh my goodness! Peabody, you didn't tell us you had a _girlfriend_." Patty said with a sly smile.

 _Why does everyone say that..._ From the corner of her eye she saw Peabody bite his lip.

"Uh, no no. We aren't dating. We are just friends, we have only known each other for a few days." Marina ran a hand through her hair and and down her neck.

"Oh I see..." Patty kept her sly smile upon her face.

Penny and Sherman then ran off into Sherman's room leaving the four adults in the living room.

"So Marina, tell us about yourself."

"Well, I uh. I mean I am nothing all that interesting..." Marina shrugged.

"Don't be silly Marina! You are very interesting, especially when you become more extraverted."

"Well, I mean but. I don't _do_ anything. I am not interesting like you, I don't have any amazing talents. I am just...just. I am just so useless!" Marina choked back a sob. She got up and stormed off into the kitchen. _Way to go Marina. Make a huge scene in front of strangers. Brilliant idea, gold star._

She heard muffled voices from the living room, she couldn't understand what they were saying but she did hear footsteps coming towards the kitchen. She sighed, preparing herself to talk about her emotions.

Peabody walked in and spotted Marina leaning against a counter and looking down. Her back was facing him and he wasn't sure if she heard him come in. He cleared his throat slightly.

Marina made a waving motion for him to come over to her, she knew he wanted to talk. "Im sorry..." She said softly, her voice slightly squeaked.

"No Marina, I am sorry. You told me you didn't want to come and yet I forced you. It's just, I don't know what it is but, I just want you to meet all my friends. So they can see how wonderful you are."

Marina laughed slightly but it sounded more like a scoff "Peabody, you have only known me for a few days. How could you possibly know how 'amazing' I am? What even makes you think that?" She looked up at him.

"I don't know, it irritates me to no end. I just don't know what it is about you."

Marina was speechless. She couldn't quite tell if he was confessing his love for her and frankly, Peabody couldn't either.

"Also, Marina, you aren't talentless. I haven't heard you sing all that clearly before, but from what I can tell, you are very talented. Not to mention you aren't useless, nobody is, especially not you. So please, can you rejoin us?"

Marina sighed slightly. "Yeah, I will. Thank you, Peabody."

He smiled at her and put his hand on her back as he led her back into the living room.

* * *

The night continued on, everyone laughed and Marina told a few stories of things herself and her friends would do in high school. She even sang a song after everyone begged her for a good 5 minutes. She was unsatisfied with her presentation and kept repeating that she 'hasn't done her musical warm up exercises' but everyone just laughed and told her she sounded wonderful. 10:30 P.M rolled around and the Petersons left with a sleeping Penny in their arms.

Marina, however stayed a while longer. Peabody and herself chatted about the night before and a little about work. By the time 11:30 rolled around, Marina had fallen asleep on the couch when peabody went to go retrieve some tea. She was slightly curled into a ball and her hand covered most of her face. Her sweater was rolled up in the back revealing her hips slightly. Peabody couldn't help but notice and his mind instantly drifted to holding her hips as they danced on a large ballroom floor, gracefully and slowly moving. He slightly shook his head to clear his thoughts. _Now Peabody, don't go thinking like that. You two are just friends. Why are you thinking like this anyway?_

He hesitated, but knew her had to wake her up. She gently shook her shoulder and she inevitably woke from her sleep. She made a small squeaking sound as she stretched then sat up. She rubbed underneath her eyes and yawned. "Sorry for falling asleep on you."

"It's alright. However, I think it would be best for you to head home and get some rest."

"Yeah, I have to work tomorrow. I will see you tomorrow then." She said with another yawn, obviously still trying to wake up. She walked towards the elevator, clicked the button, and stepped inside. "G'night, sleep tight." she smiled and gave a small wave. The doors closed, Peabody still staring at where she was standing.

"Goodnight, Marina." He said quietly.

 **(wow uhm sorry this took forever for me to update haha. I had a really hard time with this chapter for some reason, so forgive me if it isn't my best. Thank you for all of the support, it is super encouraging.)**


	7. Chapter 7

**(PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE. IF YOU ARE EASILY TRIGGERED BY SELF HARM OR CUTTING, PLEASE DO NOT READ THIS CHAPTER! You will not miss much, it will be mentioned in later chapters but you do not have to read this chapter to understand things in the future chapters. Stay safe everyone. 3)**

Marina awoke to her alarm beeping mercilessly. Rolling over, she covered her head with her pillow and made a loud groaning noise. "I don't wanna get up. I can't get up. No energy..." She muttered to herself as she squeezed her eyes tightly shut. Accepting that there was no backing out of work she forced herself out of bed. She felt as if she had weights on her feet. Sluggishly walking to her bathroom, she rubbed the wall to find the light switch, she clicked it. She squinted due to the bright light. She proceeded with her morning routine of washing her face and brushing her teeth. Leaving her bathroom she got dressed for the day, feet still dragging. Once she was ready she grabbed her keys and purse and left her apartment.

On her way down the stairs to get to her car she stumbled a few times, almost falling. _Probably shouldn't of worn the heels today, Marina._ She walked to her car, unlocked it, and got in.

When she arrived to work, she was greeted by Amanda. Marina's eyes were half closed as if she was beginning to fall asleep.

"Hey Marina, not looking so good again today." Amanda said in a concerned tone.

Marina swayed slightly as she struggled to open her eyes all the way. She yawned and waved off Amanda's comment. "No I'm fine I just-" she stopped mid-sentence, as if she forgot what she was gonna say. "I'm just real tired."

Amanda seemed unconvinced. "Marina, please. You can barely finish your sentences."

"I will just get coffee it's no big deal. I will just stay in my cubicle and it will all be alright! Haha yeahhhh..." She shuffled to the elevator, Amanda on her tail. Marina began giggling slightly, she was so tired that she couldn't control her laughter. Amanda looked at her really confused.

"Marina, what the heck are you laughing about?"

"I don't kno-" Her sentence was cut off by a fit of laughter. She almost toppled to the ground as she hunched over in her hysterics. "Oh my gosh it hurts! My ribs!" Her voice cracked and began to squeak slightly.

Amanda wrapped her arms around Marina so she wouldn't fall over. "Marina you need to quiet down we are almost at our floor."

"I am trying!" She yelled through giggles. She attempted to hold her breath, only to cause another laughter fit.

"I swear you are insane sometimes."

Marina managed to calm down as her laughter turned into hyperventilating and small giggles. By the time the elevator doors opened she was almost completely under control. However, she was even more tired than she was when she first walked in. She stumbled to her cubicle.

She heard Amanda say something, but her brain couldn't even comprehend what it was that she was saying. She just nodded as if she knew what she was saying as she turned on her computer and leaned back in her chair. Once the computer was on, she didn't even begin working, she just stared blankly at the screen. _What is wrong with me? I have worked when I was exhausted before. Why can't I just concentrate?_ She bombarded herself with questions silently. She heard Amanda come back, and from the corner of her eye she could see someone else with her. Marina sighed and didn't even bother turning.

"See I told you she isn't right!" Amanda whined at the other person.

"Miss Goodwin, what is wrong with you." Came another female voice. It was the manager of the floor she worked on, Mrs. Anderson.

"I dunno." Marina said in a monotone voice, still staring at the computer screen. "I have been feeling more tired lately. I don't feel like myself. I can't concentrate."

"Do you think she is getting sick?" Amanda whispered, but Marina could still hear her.

"Miss Goodwin, if you think you are getting sick, for the safety of yourself and the people who work here I am going to have to ask you to leave." Her manager said sternly. Marina couldn't tell if she was annoyed, concerned, or both.

 _Maybe I am coming down with a virus. Maybe I should go home._ "Yeah I guess I will go home."

Amanda gave a sigh of relief. "Ok good, and don't worry I will get all of your paper work done so when you come back you don't have tons of work."

"Thanks Amanda." Marina said as she gathered her belongings.

"Any time, now you get better! Ok?" Amanda placed a hand on Marina's shoulder.

"Yep." She replied bluntly but gave her a small smile to not be rude. Marina walked back to the elevator and pressed the down button.

When Marina got home she stripped down into her pajamas and half heartedly washed off her makeup, leaving some streaks of mascara on her cheeks. She flopped into her bed and snuggled into her blankets. In a matter of seconds she blacked out into a deep sleep.

Marina jolted awake from the sound of someone's car alarm go off. She looked around her room, completely disoriented. She wasn't sure how long she was asleep, heck she didn't even know what day it was. Grabbing her phone she clicked the home button to cause the screen to light up, it read _4:15 am November 10th._ "Holy crap I slept through the whole monday...and monday night." she rubbed her face and flattened her curls on top of her head. "What's wrong with me? I haven't felt this way in a really long time."

She decided not to worry about it and got up to make a cup of hot chocolate. When she walked into her living room, it was still pitch black. She turned on a lamp on the table next to her couch. When she was making her hot chocolate she noticed that she felt...empty. As if there was something missing, a huge chunk out of herself. Like a void sucking every bit of life she had. Her palms felt sweaty and she began to get shaky. She tried to finish making her drink, but couldn't.

She shakily walked to her couch and turned on the television. She swaddled herself in blankets in attempt to make the shaking stop. Unfortunately, it didn't stop and she felt herself beginning to break down. Her whole form began to shake as she started to sob. She didn't even know why she was sad, nothing bad has happened. She just felt so worthless, alone, and empty. Her mind flashed to the scars on her thighs, a cruel reminder of her harmful past. She wasn't proud of the things she had done to herself in the past, and those hundreds of white lines decorating her thighs didn't help. Her best friends always told her they were just battle scars and nothing to be ashamed of.

Recently, she had considered cutting again. However, the rational parts of her mind convince her not to. Unfortunately, at the time she was not thinking rationally. She needed release. Still shaking, she got up to get her exact-o knife. Small enough to not kill her, but sharp enough to hurt. She put on a pair of shorts to give easy access to her thighs. Bringing the razor to the high part of her leg, just by the line of her underwear, she dragged a long red line. She hissed in pain, but there was something comforting about it. She never knew what it was about cutting that helped, but it did. She proceeded to slice more lines, opening old scars. Once she was done, she was breathing heavily and had tears in her eyes. She couldn't believe she had done it, the memory she had been running from for years, was now in the present. In shock she through the exact-o knife across the room and began to cry, not even caring about the gushing blood.

She wrapped the blankets around herself again and curled into a ball. She knew she was in no state to go to work, but didn't even bother to call in sick. Marina just laid on her couch and mindlessly watched her television in attempt to forget what she had done.

She didn't even realize she had fallen asleep until she was awaken by her phone vibrating. The sun was flooding into her small apartment and wrapped her in comfort. She began digging through her blankets to find her vibrating phone. When she found it, she noticed that it was already 3:00 p.m. "There is _no_ way it is healthy to sleep this much." By now, the phone was already done ringing. The missed call was from a number she didn't recognize. Assuming it was from a wrong number or a telemarketer, she didn't bother calling back. Marina was still sitting on her couch, remaining wrapped in her blankets, watching television.

She binged watched many episodes of _Myth Busters_ , and didn't even noticed her living room slowly become darker. By the time she snapped back into her senses, the only light in the room was her lamp. She went to go check the time, but noticed she had a voicemail from the unknown number. Brushing it off, she noticed it was already 8:20 pm. Sighing, she got up to get her laptop. She watched a few youtube videos in attempt to cheer up, only earning a few chuckles. Still attempting to improve her mood, she decided to blast some music, only to no avail. It only made her feel more out of place, the happy tunes contrasting extremely to her mood. She closed her laptop and went back to watching television. Some sort of ocean documentary was on emitting calm blue lights and peaceful narration. Even though she slept almost for two whole days she felt herself beginning to drift to sleep.

Marina shot up out of her sleep from a loud crash of thunder. Her heart was pounding and her head was spinning from sitting up so fast. She laid her head in her hands as she tried to catch her breath. Once she did, she collapsed back on her couch, about to go back to sleep. Another roll of thunder rumbled through her apartment, causing her picture frames to shake slightly. She never was scared of thunderstorms, but since she was so emotionally and physically drained, she couldn't help but shake slightly. Sighing with exasperation, she got up to get a comforter to add to her other two fleece blankets. She tossed it on her couch and went into her bedroom. She grabbed her stuffed lamb that she had since she was little and a pillow. She walked back to her couch. She fluffed her pillow and propped it up on the arm rest. She then wrapped herself with the two fleece blankets and draped the comforter over herself. She snuggled into her blankets and stuffed animal and gave a small sigh. She couldn't help but ponder about what was causing her to feel this way all of the sudden. Having a history of depression and anxiety made her lean towards that being a possibility. It was just odd that it worsened dramatically so quick. However, now that she thought about it, she has been feeling more down and tired lately. She realized she had more anxiety attacks coming seemingly out of no where.

Marina knew that she was never cured of her illnesses when she was taken off of her meds all of those years ago. But when she moved out and began to see her symptoms worsen again, she never bothered to take it upon herself to see a therapist or a doctor to get medication. She thought that maybe she could just deal with it, that the symptoms would eventually fade away again. Obviously that didn't happen, and her own decisions came back to bite her in the butt.

Deep down she knew she needed to get treatment, but in her current state she couldn't see that happening any time soon. She sighed as she repositioned herself to get more comfortable, eventually falling into a dreamless slumber.

In the state of near unconsciousness, Marina felt her phone beginning to ring. Half asleep, she picked up her phone to see it was the unfamiliar number. Grumbling about how they wouldn't leave her alone she shut her phone off, and went back to sleep.

Peabody sighed as his phone was sent to Marina's voicemail, once again. He began to get worried. Marina left early on Monday, didn't show up tuesday, and is no where to be seen today. He wouldn't of been _as_ concerned if she called in sick. However, with absolutely no word from her end, Peabody began to fear the worst. He decided that he would go in to check on her once the work day was over.

Once the end of the day rolled around, Peabody went to go pick up Sherman from school. Once he retrieved his son, he immediately headed to Marina's apartment complex.

"Mr. Peabody, where are we going? This isn't how we usually go home." Sherman asked, extremely confused.

Peabody gave a small sigh "We are going to check on Marina, she hasn't been at work for three days. She hasn't even called in sick. I am beginning to get worried."

Sherman's face dropped at the thought of Marina being sick or hurt. "I hope she is ok."

When the pair arrived to Marina's complex they headed up to her apartment. Peabody gave three knocks on her door. No answer. He knocked a but harder this time, feeling fear wash over him. Until he heard someone. It was muffled, but he could barely make out "Gimme a second." He heard the door unlock, but it never opened. How odd. Figuring Marina wasn't going to open it, he opened it himself.

Marina was draped over her couch, her left leg and arm dangling over the side. Peabody and Sherman hurried in and over to their friend.

"Marina? Marina are you ok?" Peabody said, almost in full fledged panic. He shook her gently in attempt to get a response. Marina made a groaning noise and buried her head into her pillow. "Marina how long have you been laying here? Are you sick? Are you hurt?"

She only responded with "Three days."

"You have been laying on this couch for three days?"

"Pretty much."

"Marina can you sit up? I want to talk to you."

Marina slowly sat up and look towards Peabody, never making eye contact. Peabody took notice to the dry blood on her legs and pajama shorts.

"Are you hurt? There is blood everywhere?" He said as he reached to touch her leg lightly. Marina winced at his touch. She sighed and lifted to show dozens of cuts on both of her upper thighs. "What happened?" She didn't respond. However, Peabody did see tears glistening her eyes.

"Mr. Peabody is she gonna be ok?" Sherman asked, beginning to tear up himself. He has never seen someone like this before. Not only was it scary to see someone completely out of their mind like that, but her was worried for his friend.

"I hope so, Sherman." Peabody said as he went to turn on the lamp to get a better look at Marina. Her eyes followed his every move. When he returned back to kneeling in front of her, she looked him into the eyes this time. He couldn't help but gasp slightly. Her eyes were dull and empty, she had mascara streaks on her face, tears stained her cheeks, and she had dark circles under her eyes. "Have you slept at all?"

Marina scoffed slightly at the comment. "That's all I have done."

"Have you eaten? Taken a shower? Anything but sleep?"

"No."

Peabody sighed. "Marina I want you to go take a shower and come back in here. I am gonna think about how to help you."

"Ok." She went to her bed room to grab a new pair of pajamas and underwear. Walking into the bathroom she stripped down and treated her cuts. She then proceeded to shower, brush her teeth, and get dressed. She felt a little better and gave Peabody an extremely small smile.

"Marina I want you to tell me what's wrong." Peabody said as he held onto her shoulders, making her look him in the eye.

"Well, when I was 14 I got diagnosed with anxiety and depression. My therapist recommended me to be put on a prescription. My parents weren't really open to the idea, but once they realized that basic breathing exercises didn't work they decided to let me get the medicine. I started taking my medication when I was 15. I took it for three years with no side effects, and it was wonderful. My therapist thought I didn't need to rely on the medication any more and lowered my dosage until I was completely off it. By the time I was medication free, it was a month before I graduated high school. Not long after I graduated, I moved and I began to notice my symptoms beginning to creep back up on me. I have been putting off going to see a doctor for a while because I was a poor college student and extremely busy. This year, however, began to go down hill. My symptoms have come back completely and I feel exhausted and empty almost everyday. I have frequent anxiety attacks that are triggered by seemingly nothing. I just feel like I am falling apart." Marina explained as she looked away trying to not burst into tears.

"What happened to your legs?"

This set her completely off as she cried into her hands. "I cut myself with my exact-o knife."

Peabody looked at her in shock. He felt his heart ache and his stomach twist. "You did this to yourself?" He whispered.

Marina just nodded as she continued to cry. Peabody looked at Sherman who looked very worried. Peabody sat next to Marina and wrapped his arms around her shaking form. Marina laid her head on his shoulder as she continued to cry. Sherman climbed onto the couch and snuggled into Marina's side much like he did the other night. The three of them sat there, completely unaware of how much time was passing. It was silent apart from Marina's sniffles. They were all together, they were all safe, and that's all that mattered.

 **(Hey everyone. I hope you liked the chapter! This was extremely angsty so I hope you enjoyed it. X3 I am gonna try to get another chapter up tomorrow. I can't guarantee it, but it is a possibility.)**


	8. Chapter 8

Almost a week has gone by since Marina's break down. She contacted a doctor and got prescribed her medications. Things were beginning to look up for Marina. Peabody and herself would meet during lunch breaks during the week and sometimes walk around town before Peabody would have to pick up Sherman from school.

Currently, Peabody and Marina were walking around the park enjoying the crisp weather and sunshine. Sherman had after school activities and wouldn't have to be taken home for another couple of hours. The two of them walked the concrete path around the park, shoulder to shoulder, chatting about plans for Thanksgiving.

"Yeah, I am heading down to see my family on Saturday. I haven't seen them since last Christmas so I am staying for a week. I am really looking forward to it." Marina said.

"That sounds delightful! I am glad you are going to be able to see your loved ones for the holiday." Peabody said with a smile.

"What do Sherman and you do for Thanksgiving?"

"Nothing too spectacular, usually. However last year I did take him back to see the first Thanksgiving."

"Oh so you went to take him to Plymouth! That's cool, my mom said she went there when she was younger. I never been, but I would love to one day. I have always had an interest in history."

Peabody's stomach dropped when he noticed he mentioned the WABAC. Even with the whole 'space time continuum' debacle earlier in the year that pretty much revealed the WABAC to all of New York, time travel still probably isn't general knowledge amongst most of the public. "Oh yes, of course. However, this year I am afraid I have interesting planned for Sherman. I suppose we will have a traditional dinner and stay in for the evening."

Marina thought for a minute. Her parents always asked her why she didn't bring any friends for the holidays. They were always enthusiastic about her meeting more people since she was extremely introverted. "Well, if you have nothing planned, why don't you come with me to see my family? My family and friends would love to meet you and Sherman! We have a guest bedroom so there is plenty of room." Marina proposed with a large smile.

"As wonderful as that sounds, I don't want to intrude on you and your quality time with your family."

"Don't be silly! My family _always_ asks me to bring friends over for the holidays. It's no problem at all."

"If you insist, I accept your invitation."

"Awesome! I recommend you start packing tonight so you can be ready for saturday. You should be at my house pretty early, probably around 6 am, and we can make it to Georgia around 9:30 pm."

"Splendid."

By the time Friday rolled around, Sherman was bursting with excitement. He told all of his friends he was going out of town for Thanksgiving. Obviously, his friends were curious about where their friend was going.

"Sherman, where are you even going tomorrow? You have been talking about it ever since you found out, but you never told us where you were going." Mason asked as he took a bite out of his sandwich.

"My dad's friend, Marina, asked us to go with us to see her family for Thanksgiving. Her family lives in Georgia, which is why we are staying the whole Thanksgiving break."

"I didn't know your dad had a girlfriend, Sherman." His other friend, Carl, pointed out.

"What? Marina and my dad aren't dating! I asked Mr. Peabody about it and he said that they are strictly very close friends."

"I dunno, Sherman. My older sister brought a guy over last Christmas and they are engaged now." Carl said.

"Yeah. Mr. Peabody totally likes her Sherman." Penny interjected. "The other night when I came over with my family he looked at her different when she talked. He is totally falling for her. Call it girl instincts, I just know."

"Whatever you say you guys."

It was Saturday morning and Marina quickly threw the last of her thing into her suitcase. She checked her phone, it was 5:45. "Peabody and Sherman should be here any minute."

With impeccable timing, Peabody knocked on Marina's door. She quickly went to open the door and rushed back to finish packing. Peabody and Sherman walked into the living room with their bags of luggage and shut the door.

"Hey guys, I am just throwing some last minute things in my bag and we will be heading out." Marina said as she frantically ran room to room throwing random things into the pocket of her suitcase.

"That is fine, we still have 15 minutes anyway." Peabody said as he loosened the scarf around his neck slightly. The previous night was so cold that you could see the frost on car windows. "Be sure to bring a warm coat to keep warm. It's freezing out."

"Way ahead of ya." Marina gestured her head to the arm of her couch with her brown wool coat, hat, and scarf. She zipped the pocket of her bag and gave a triumphant smile. "Ok, I am ready you guys. Lemme just put on my coat and things on and we will be out the door."

Marina went to her couch and began to layer her clothing. She looped her scarf into a knot, put on and buttoned up her coat, and pulled her beanie on. She grabbed her suitcase and walked to the door. "Alright, here we go!"

The trio took the elevator down to the parking lot where Marina's car was. They are tossed their luggage into the back and got into the car. Marina's motherly instincts kicked in and went to make Sherman would be as comfortable as possible for their long journey. She made sure his coat and scarf was off and placed them on the seat next to him. Making sure he was buckled, she used his coat as a pillow to prop against the seatbelt and used her own coat as a blanket. Once she was sure Sherman was happy and comfortable, she went to the driver's seat and started up the car. She immediately started up the heat to warm up the car, as she was starting to get chilly wearing her thin long sleeve shirt. She looked at Peabody and gave him a smile as she backed out of her parking spot and went on the road to start their journey.

Thirteen hours, three bathroom stops, and one restaurant stop later, they all made it to Marina's childhood home. Marina gave a sigh of relief as she pulled into the familiar drive way. She turned off her car and stepped out into the cool air. Throwing on her jacket she went to the back of her car to unpack their luggage, Peabody followed. Sherman fell asleep when they were about two hours away from their destination and was out ever since. Marina took her own suitcase up the stairs of her home and rang the doorbell. Her mother answered with a smile.

"Hi love bug! It's wonderful to have you here finally!" Her mom said as she gave her daughter a tight hug.

"Momma, I brought some friends with me, so can you get dad or Ryan to help me carry in their things?"

"Marina! Why didn't you tell me you were bringing guests? I haven't cleaned at all!"

Marina sighed at her mom. "I wasn't aware I had to tell you. You told me last year to 'just bring your friends whenever you like, we love it when you have friends over!' I just thought that I would just...bring them."

"Well there is nothing we can do now. I don't mind you bringing friends, I would just like to have a clean home when you do bring them." Her mom explained as she walked onto the porch with Marina, she shut the door behind her. "Also, your father and brother are watching the football game so they won't be coming out anytime soon."

Marina rolled her eyes playfully, but still rather annoyed. "Figures. So I guess you are gonna help me?"

"Sure I am! I am fully capable of carrying luggage."

"I know you are momma."

The two climbed down the stairs and walked to Marina's car. Peabody was seen pulling out luggage and placing it on the driveway.

"Peabody, this is my mom. Mom, this is Mr. Peabody."

Peabody stood up straight and walked over to Marina and her mother. "Pleased to meet you Mrs. Goodwin." Peabody said as he held out his hand.

Marina's mother shook his hand firmly. "It's very nice to meet you too, Mr. Peabody. But may I ask, is there a first name I should call you by? Mr. Goodwin likes to be on a first name basis and I know he would pressure you if I don't tell him first."

Peabody looked to the side, slightly embarrassed. "I mean, I suppose if you insist, my first name is Hector. However, nobody has called me that for a very long time."

"If you are uncomfortable I will-"

Peabody waved his hand to dismiss the argument. "It's quite alright Mrs. Goodwin. I'm just not used to it is all."

Mrs. Goodwin smiled warmly. "Well good, because I didn't want to make you uncomfortable or anything." She turned to he daughter "Didn't you say that you had another friend?"

"Oh yes, that other person would be my son." Peabody explained as he went over to open the car door to reveal a sleeping Sherman.

"Oh he is precious! What is his name?"

"His name is Sherman." Marina said from over where the luggage was. "But seriously, can we talk later in the house? I am cold and I want to go inside."

Marina grabbed one bag and her mother grabbed another, leaving no luggage for Peabody. They told him to carry Sherman in and they would head inside.

Everyone walked up the stairs and went into the house. When they walked in they heard the sound of a television playing and saw Marina's father and younger brother sitting on the couch.

"Thanks for helping us you couch potatoes." Marina said sarcastically.

"I didn't even know you needed help!" Her father yelled slightly offended.

"It's fine, Robin, let it go." Mrs. Goodwin said. "By the way, Marina brought her boyfriend and his son."

"Mom! We aren't dating!" Marina whined.

"Mmmhmm, ok sweetie." Her mom patted her shoulder. "Anyways let's get you three in here and ready for bed. I am sure you are all exhausted." Stepping aside, she let her daughter and the two guests climb the three stairs into the living room.

Marina walked over to her brother and sat on his lap. "Hey Ryan, nice to see you again."

"Marina! Get off! I am trying to watch the game." Ryan whined as he pushed her off the couch.

"Gee Ryan, not even gonna be nice to your sister when she comes home. How rude."

Ryan slapped her arm "Got you last." He said in a mocking tone.

Marina glared. "You better sleep with one eye open. The sibling war begins."

"Marina, Ryan." Their mother said sternly "Stop it, we have guests and I don't want you making a scene."

Marina rolled her eyes and scoffed. "I was just saying hi, he is the one that slapped me."

"Whatever you say, Marina. But how about we forget that and show your friends their room." She said as she walked down the short hallway, Peabody and Marina following. "Ok so this is the bathroom." She said gesturing to a door on one corner. "This is Ryan's room, I would't go in there unless you want to be shouted at." Pointing at the door with a video game poster on it, just across where the bathroom is. "This is Marina's room, and the door next to it is the guest room. There is a queen size bed in there. You and your son can sleep together or I can have Robin bring up the air mattress. Whichever you prefer."

"I believe Sherman and I would be fine sharing a bed. Thank you for being so welcoming in your lovely home."

Flattered, Marina's mom waved off the comment. "You're a charmer, but my house is a mess."

"The house is fine, mom. It literally looks perfectly ok? But I am really tired right now, and I am sure _Hector_ is too. I will see ya in the morning." Marina said as she grabbed Peabody's arm to take him into the guest room.

"Alright then, goodnight you two."

"Night mom." Marina said as she shut the door. Once the door was shut she turned to face Peabody. "Hector, huh?" she raised an eyebrow.

Peabody laughed nervously as he placed Sherman on the bed. "Yes, that's my first name."

"I like it, it suits you." Marina said and playfully nudged his side. "Anyway, I will be in my room. You can come in if you want once Sherman is in bed. I will probably be asleep though."

"No that's fine, I will see you in the morning. Goodnight, Marina."

"Goodnight...Hector."

The next morning, Peabody and Sherman woke up rather early. They both walked out of their guest room and into the living room. Marina's younger brother, Ryan, was laying on the couch watching television. Mrs. Goodwin, hearing the footsteps, called out from the kitchen.

"Come in the kitchen y'all! Robin made breakfast." She yelled.

The father and son duo walked into the dining room to see Mrs. Goodwin sitting at the kitchen table.

"Good morning you two! It's nice to see you up and awake, Sherman. I am Marina's mom, but you can call me Ms. Anne."

"Ok, thank you for having us over Ms. Anne." Sherman said with a smile.

"It's no problem, honey." Turning her gaze to Peabody "I suppose my daughter is still sleeping, not surprised."

Peabody didn't get to answer before he was interrupted by a scoff from Ryan. "Of course she is sleeping, she won't be up until 12!" He yelled. Just at that moment, another pair of footsteps came from the hallway.

"Thanks for waking me up Ryan." Marina said grouchily. She flopped on the couch and curled into a ball. "Fight me."

"Oh my God, she raised from the dead." He said sarcastically.

"Shut up."

"Marina, come in here! Your father made breakfast." Ms. Anne called. There was a groaning sound from Marina. She came into the dining room, she was rubbing her eyes and attempting to smooth down her hair. "I want you to have a big breakfast and get dressed. We are going out to the square today."

Marina sat on the chair next to her mother and laid her head on the table. "Kay."

Once everyone ate their breakfast, they retreated to their bedrooms to get dressed. Once Peabody were ready they walked into the living room to wait for Marina.

Finally, Marina walked out of her room wearing a black baseball cap. "Are we leaving yet?"

"One minute I have to get my phone and wallet." Marina's father, Robin, said.

Marina sighed and sat on the couch, next to her brother. She poked him in the arm. "That's for last night."

Her brother poked her back. "That's for that weird hat." They proceeded to poke each other in a seemingly endless battle.

Poke. "My hat looks adorable, so shut up. Stop poking me."

Poke. "You started it."

Poke. "Nuh-uh, you slapped me last night."

Poke. "Stop. Now."

Poke. "Ok now we stop, it's only fair cause you started it." The bickering turned into shouting. "My first day back and you are already annoying me!"

"I'm annoying you?"

"Yes! You are annoying me!"

"You two!" Mr Robin shouted sternly, causing everyone in the room to jump slightly. "Are y'all out of your darn minds? We have guests over and you are fighting like children. I suggest you stop it and we get going."

Both Marina and Ryan groaned. "Fine." They said in unison.

Everyone headed to Marina's parent's minivan. Sherman and Ryan sat in the back, Peabody and Marina sat in the middle, and Marina's parents sat at the front.

Despite doing anything in his power to annoy his sister, Ryan was a very sweet boy and tried his best to engage Sherman in conversation. They began talking about their love of science.

"So Hector, what do you do for a living?" Robin asked.

"I own an incorporation in New York." Peabody responded.

"Oh wow. Are things going well for ya?"

"I would hope so dad, that's the high end incorporation I have been working for these past few months that I told you about." Marina pointed out.

"Oh I see, I didn't put two and two together. Is that how you two met?"

"Yes." Marina and Peabody replied at the same time. Both of Marina's parents chuckled at their unison.

After about 30 minutes of driving, the minivan parked in the middle of town called the 'Down Town Square'. There were shops in older buildings that were shaped in a square, hence the name, with a park in the middle.

Everyone piled out of the car and looked around.

"Where should we start?" Ms. Anne asked.

"I wanna go to the park. I haven't been in forever!" Marina said as she stared longingly at the beautiful park in front of her.

"Can't we do that later? Everyone else wanted to go to the trick shop, I want to show Sherman too." Ryan protested, gesturing the opposite direction.

Marina sighed, slightly disappointed. As much as she loved looking in the trick shop and other stores, she really had her heart set on the park. It's where her friends took that picture she told Peabody about.

Noticing his daughter's disappointment, Mr. Robin proposed a new idea. "Well why don't Marina and Hector go to the park for a little while and they can meet us later? They are adults after all."

Everyone pleased with the plan, split up and walked to their destinations. Marina and Peabody walked shoulder to shoulder like they would in New York on their lunch breaks. Peabody stared forward and took in the lovely scenery. Marina looked up at him with a smile. With a sly smirk she took off her baseball cap and placed it on Peabody's head. She laughed at his shocked expression.

Right when he was about to take it off, Marina protested. "Stop! It looks cute on you!"

 _Cute._ That adjective swirled around in Peabody's mind as his stomach filled with butterflies. He didn't understand why that word meant so much coming from Marina. He wanted to work up the courage to say _"Well, you look cuter in it."_ in a snarky fashion. But he felt his throat close up anytime he went to say it. He was quite frustrated, though he had never dated before, he was known to be a charmer. He had never had problems acting charming or even flirtatious around women before. So why is it so different with Marina? _Maybe it's those gorgeous eyes, or adorable smile, or her funny personality, or her wittiness, or-_ Peabody cut his thoughts off at that. There were so many things about her that drew him in.

He looked down at Marina who had her eyes closed as she took in a deep breath of fresh air. Her eyes slowly opened as she exhaled, leaving a content smile on her face. Marina instinctively moved closer to Peabody as they passed a group of women on the sidewalk to make more room. Because of this, their finger tips brushed together slightly. Taking Marina by surprise, Peabody took her hand and held it gently. He smiled as he saw her look down at their hands in surprise.

Marina felt herself blush. They were holding hands, walking in a park and just enjoying each other's presence. She beamed as she leaned her head lightly on Peabody's arm.

The two walked towards the trick shop where they were supposed to meet Marina's family and Sherman. After a few minutes of joking around with the elaborate costumes and masks on display, everyone decided it was time to leave.

By the time the minivan pulled into the driveway of the house it was already dark out. Peabody and Marina got out of their seats and began to head up the stairs to the front door.

"Hey Peabody, do you and Sherman want to watch a movie with me tonight? It will have to be in my room because my dad likes to watch TV before he heads to bed." Marina said.

"I would love to. But I will have to see about Sherman, however. He seemed to have taken a liking to your brother and they may want to spend some time together."

"Yeah, Ryan always used to be good with kids younger than him. They will probably play video games on his computer or something." She said as she unlocked the front door and stepped inside. Walking up the short stair case into her living room, she made her way to Ryan's room. She grabbed a beanbag and opened her own door to throw the beanbag in. Her room was rather small, it had fairy lights on the ceiling and many posters. Against the wall, she had a trundle bed which she threw the bean bag against. She then grabbed her own from the corner of the room and put the bean bags next to each other.

"Im gonna get in my pj's if you wanna get in yours I would do it now." She said before she closed the door.

Peabody went to put on his pajamas and walked to Marina's door that was still closed. He knocked before he opened, unsure if she was still getting dressed. Marina opened the door and gave him a smile. She stepped aside to let him walk in and then closed it.

Clasping her hands together she bounced on the balls of her toes. "So! What movie do you wanna watch?" She asked as she picked up a pile of DVDs on her dresser.

After a short debate, they both decided to watch _The Breakfast Club._ Marina was extremely excited as she was always a fan of that movie and hurriedly put it in the DVD player. Grabbing her remote she hopped onto her bean bag and got comfortable. She patted the opposite beanbag to silently urge Peabody to sit next to her. He sat next to her and got comfortable. The movie started and they both watched silently. Throughout the movie they would laugh at some scenes and continued watching. When the movie ended she mimicked the famous fist pump Bender did at the end of the film. The end credits began to roll and she looked at Peabody who looked like he had fallen asleep. She gently shook his shoulder to try to wake him. No response, just the sound of his breathing. Marina decided not to wake him and went to get a blanket to cover him. She turned off all of her lights and climbed into her bed. She smiled when she heard Peabody sigh peacefully in his sleep. She slowly began to fall asleep, into her own peaceful slumber.

 **(WELL GOODNESS! Ok so typing this chapter was a doozy! I tried to throw in some humor using the usual sibling fighting and such. This chapter is much more light hearted than the last chapter, obviously. I hope you like this chapter! I will be making another chapter at the Goodwin's home but probably no more than one more. Have a great day and see ya later!)**


	9. Chapter 9

It was Thanksgiving and the Goodwin house was in a full cooking frenzy. Ms Anne was frantically going back and forth in the kitchen trying to prepare all of the dishes for the feast. Everyone was up around 8:30 as they were told to help prepare the meal. Marina tiredly cleaned various vegetables for a salad, Sherman was asked to rip apart bread with Ryan for the stuffing, and Peabody was asked to help Marina cut up the vegetables.

After a couple hours of cooking, all of the side dishes were prepared and all they had to do was wait for the turkey. Grateful that she could get out of the stuffy kitchen, Marina flopped onto the couch. She felt someone sit by her head, looking up she saw Peabody. She scooted up to lay her head on his lap, taking Peabody by surprise. Her eyes were closed and had the smallest hint of a smile on her lips. Not even really realizing it, he went to go run his hands through the curls on her head. Marina sighed contently at the sensation.

By the time it was noon, the doorbell rang to signal a guest's arrival. Marina was forced to get up from her comfortable position to answer the door. At the door was Marina's grandmother. Her eyes beamed when she saw Marina. Wrapping her arms around her grandmother, Marina gave her a tight hug.

"Hi gram. How are you?" Marina asked as she closed the door and walked back into the living room.

"Oh you know, same old same old. It's so nice to see you, love." Her grandmother said and caressed Marina's face. Catching sight of Peabody, she gave a confused look. "Who might this gentleman be?"

"Gram, this is my friend." Marina said as she sat next to Peabody.

"Hello, ma'am. I am Peabody, pleased to make your acquaintance." He greeted in his normal calm and smooth tone.

"What a gentleman he is, and how handsome! I hope you treat my grand daughter well, young man. I would hate it if you hurt her." She said sternly.

"It wouldn't even cross my mind. I will protect your grand daughter at all costs. She is a very close friend of mine." He said with a suave smile.

Extremely pleased with his answer, and kind of shocked, Marina's grandmother smiled back. "I am glad to hear that."

Most of the afternoon consisted of Marina's mother and grandmother arguing the usual 'mother daughter' arguments. The constant yelling and bickering caused Marina's anxiety to sky rocket. She never did well with yelling or conflict for that matter. Deciding that she has had enough, she got up from the couch and retreated to her room.

She was trying to get her shaking under control when she looked down at the beanbags Peabody fell asleep on last night. She smiled at the memory of Peabody sound asleep on her floor.

Still feeling extremely anxious, and still able to hear the bickering, she decided to stay in her room. She climbed under her covers and wrapped herself in attempt to calm down. Not long after she settled in her bed she heard a knock at her door. Muttering a quiet "Come in." The door slowly opened. The opening door revealed a worried Peabody. Ever since her breakdown he was extremely worried and concerned about her and would constantly check in on her. Whether it would be by phone or checking up on her at her home.

"Marina, are you feeling alright?" He asked, as he walked in and closed the door.

She shrugged slightly, causing the covers over her to shift. "The yelling makes me anxious. Plus my mom is in a bad mood and I don't want her to yell at me." She said in an almost child like tone.

Peabody walked to her bed. "Would you like me to stay in here?"

"Yes please."

Sitting on one of the beanbags he slept on the previous night, Peabody sighed softly. He stared forward at the wall in front of him and listened to Marina's breathing. It was slightly faster than normal and he could tell she was extremely anxious. He frowned slightly, he hated when she was so troubled. There was some shuffling behind him and she soon saw Marina climbing out of her bed. She sat on the beanbag next to Peabody and curled into a ball. He decided to place his arm on her beanbag, allowing her to snuggle into his chest.

"Peabody, you are very special to me." Marina said, seemingly out of nowhere. "You have helped me through a lot, more than I though anyone ever could. It just boggles my mind because you came into my life so quickly. Yet I trust you so wholeheartedly. That is very unlike me since I am a very private person. I feel like I can trust you with my life, and I have."

"Marina, you're very special to me as well." Peabody began. "I don't know what it is, as I have never been the best with emotions. However, I know you are something extremely amazing. Other than Sherman, I have never been so close to someone before."

Marina smiled as her stomach fluttered and her heart swelled. She knew this feeling very well, she was developing a crush. Frowning slightly, she realized that Peabody would never fall for her. Although he had admitted that he felt very close to her, she knew he only meant that as a friend. He would eventually find someone far more beautiful than herself, someone he really deserved. He would then become closer with that person and completely forget about her. Her heart shattered as she gulped thickly.

Taking notice to her fallen face, Peabody became worried again. "Are you ok, Marina?"

Marina curled inward, almost in a fetal position. "Yeah, everything is fine."

Peabody knew everything was _not_ fine, but decided to not push it. The two of them laid there for another few minutes until there was another knock at the door. They both quickly sat upright, so they were no longer snuggling. The door opened to show Marina's grandmother.

"Are you two gonna come out here? I want to be able to talk to y'all." She asked.

Marina reluctantly stood up and walked back into the living room, Peabody following.

"So how have you been Marina?" Her grandmother asked as she sat down on the rocking chair next to the couch.

Both Peabody and Marina sat on the end of the couch closest to the rocking chair.

"I have been fine." Marina responded dryly.

Looking down at Marina's stomach, her Grandmother took notice to her belly rolls. "I have noticed that you have gained weight." She said disapprovingly.

Marina quickly straightened her posture and wrapped her arms around her torso, much like she did when she first met Peabody. "I guess so, I'm not sure." she said quietly as she looked down.

"Honey, if you lost all of that weight you would be so beautiful." Her Grandmother said. "Not to mention a good man won't want you if you don't take care of yourself. Men want beautiful fit women. Not frumpy fat women."

Marina kept her gazed lowered as she slightly nodded her head in agreement. She sniffled as tears began to come out her eyes.

"Now don't act like that, dear. I am just trying to help."

Peabody looked at Marina and her grandmother in shock. How could a family member be so cruel? Peabody never knew his family since he was raised in an orphanage, but her was aware that families were not supposed to treat each other like that.

The worst part was, Marina actually believed her. She believed every single word. How could she not see what Peabody saw? How could she not see how beautiful she really was? Peabody was practically fuming at this point, but he tried to maintain his calm composure.

The afternoon seemed to roll by slowly. Thankfully, however, around five the feast was finished being prepared and everyone was called into the dining room. Everyone took their seats. Once everyone was seated, Mr. Robin spoke up.

"If everyone could bow their heads and close their eyes so we may bless our food." He said. Everyone did so and waited for Mr. Robin to begin. "Dear, Lord. Thank you for giving us the money to be able to prepare this wonderful meal. Thank you for our lovely Marina coming home safely. Thank you for blessing her and ourselves with her friends, Hector and Sherman. We ask you to purify this food so it may nourish our bodies. Amen."

Everyone said "Amen" in unison and began to prepare their plates. Marina went to the kitchen counter to place her food onto her plate. Feeling extremely self conscious about her body, especially her grandmother's little talk, she decided to give herself small portions. Not even getting a full spoonful of each side and getting an extremely small slice of turkey she went to go sit down to eat.

She slowly ate her small portions since she mostly just pushed around her food. However, she eventually finished her plate and she was extremely tempted to go back for seconds. When she stood up to get more food, her grandmother didn't hesitate to call her out.

"Do you really think you need any more food? I thought you were trying to lose weight." Her grandmother said sternly. Everyone at the table looked at her.

"I-I well. I didn't get much for my first serving so-"

"The amount you got was perfectly fine, especially at your weight." Her grandmother practically shouted.

No one dared to speak up, and both her parents subtly nodded in agreement.

Marina looked stunned at her parents. She looked over to Peabody who just stared at her in utter an dumbfounded state. She began to tear up as she looked down at her empty plate. She still felt extremely hungry, she hasn't eaten much the whole time she was at her home. She actually hasn't eaten the entire day. Marina thought that coming back to her parents would allow her to recover from her eating issues, but it ended up making everything worse. She dropped the plate, causing it to shatter and everyone to gasp. She ran out of the dining room in hysterics.

Mr. Robin stood up, outraged. "Marina Brooke Goodwin! You better get yourself back in here and clean up this mess!" He shouted, but there was only the sound of her bedroom door slamming. Sherman and Peabody looked at each other in shock, even Ryan was surprised about what happened. Neither of the children dared to move from their spots, afraid to outrage Mr. Robin even more. Peabody, however, didn't care. He calmly stood up from his chair, thanked everyone for the meal, and excused himself. He smoothly walked out of the dining room and to Marina's bedroom. He could hear sobbing from the living room, causing his heart to ache. He gently knocked on her door.

"Please, please, leave me alone. I'm sorry, I'm sorry but please leave me alone." She said between sobs and hyperventilating.

"Marina, it's ok. It's me, please let me in." He said in a calming tone. He heard footsteps and the door unlock. The door cracked open to reveal Marina's tear stained, red face. She let him step in and quickly slammed and locked the door.

She flung herself into his arms and began to sob. Her breaths were extremely rapid and she felt as if she was going to pass out. "I'm so sorry." She repeated over and over as she wept into his chest. He felt her whole body heave with frantic breaths and sobs. He rubbed her back in attempt to calm her down. Leading her to the bed, he sat her down.

"It's ok, just breathe deep breaths. I don't want you passing out."

"I just- I just want to die. I hate myself so much." She sobbed as she pounded her head with her fists. She just wanted to scream and rip her hair out.

Peabody felt those words stab him in the heart. He pulled her hands down off her head and held them in his own. "Marina, listen to me. Don't believe what your family says. It simply isn't true."

"You're just saying that! You will never understand. I am hideous because of my body type and because of that no one will ever love me."

Peabody was at loss for words. How was he supposed to respond to that? He certainly thought she was beautiful, but she wouldn't believe him. She would just think he was telling her sweet nothings. But it was true, he thought that she was gorgeous, every single part of her.

"I don't want to go home but I don't want to stay here." She said softly. Ms Adams would be coming back to work, which meant Marina wouldn't be able to go out during lunch break to walk around the park anymore. No, she would only be harassed day in and day out.

Peabody looked down at Marina, confused. Why wouldn't she want to go home? "Why would you not want to go back to New York?"

Marina's mouth clamped shut. She didn't want to tell him, because she knew that he would demote her or worse, fire her. She didn't want her petty feelings to cost someone's job. Plus, if Ms. Adams was simply demoted, she could harass Marina at any time.

"Marina. What's causing you to not want to go home?" He pushed.

Marina sighed and looked away. She knew there was no backing out now. "The woman I am the assistant of, Ms Adams, harasses me. She makes fun of my weight, she teases me so much that I have pretty much stopped eating. I came back home to my parents hoping I would be able to recover, but everything is worse. There is no escape, no matter where I go I am harassed." She said with a crack in her voice. She would cry, but she had no more tears left. She gulped to regain her voice, her tongue and throat dry from the dehydration from all of the crying. "I guess I don't deserve peace, and I have to learn to accept that I guess."

"Marina, I can fix all of this. Ms Adams works for me after all, with a single word-"

"No!" She yelled, cutting him off. "I don't want you to fire her. I'm just not like that, after all this job isn't permanent. I'm an art student, I am only her assistant for some spare cash. It's just...hard...being put down everyday ya know?"

Peabody looked at Marina. Yeah, he did know. When he was in the orphanage he would tell all of the other children about the great things he was going to do one day. However they always teased him, they told him that there was no chance he would be able to do anything if he didn't get adopted. For most of his childhood he thought he would never get out of that dang orphanage. Thankfully when he turned 18 and was legally an adult he moved out of that hell hole and bought a small apartment in a sketchy complex. Thankfully, he was top of his class in high-school and granted a scholarship to get into Harvard. My, how he had proved everyone wrong. "Fine, I won't fire her."

Marina let out a breath of relief and let her shoulders slump forward. "Good, thank you."

"However, how would you feel if you became my personal assistant?" He asked suavely.

Marina's face lit up. "Really?"

Peabody chuckled "Yes of course! Does that make you feel a bit better?"

"A lot better. That is such a huge relief, thank you."

"It is no problem."

At that moment, there was another knock on Marina's door. Marina felt her pit of her stomach drop with dread. She walked to the door and slowly opened it. She was relieved to see it was only her brother and Sherman. Stepping to the side, allowing them to walk in, Ryan enveloped her in a warm hug. Even though he took it upon himself to annoy his sister, as she did to annoy him, he really did love her and would be there for her. "I'm really sorry about what gram said."

"It's alright, man. There is nothing you could do." She said as she squeezed him tighter.

"Yeah, I guess not. It still isn't right though." He replied with a sad sigh.

Marina felt a tug on her shirt. Looking down, she saw Sherman. Giving him a small smile, she knelt down to give him a hug.

"I think you are beautiful Ms. Marina." He whispered quietly as he hugged her tightly.

Marina smiled, Sherman was a very sweet little boy. "Thank you, Sherman. That means a lot." She said with a warm smile and kissed his forehead.

The whole bedroom was filled with warmness from the sincerity and love, the way it was supposed to feel on Thanksgiving. However, that happy feeling was cut short when there was a call from Ms. Anne.

"Family meeting! I need everyone out here."

Ryan and Marina grimaced at each other. Their child hood was filled with many family meetings, none of them were pleasant. All four of them walked out of Marina's room. Mr and Mrs. Goodwin were sitting on the couch ad Marina's and Ryan's grandmother was sitting on the rocking chair.

"Sit." Ms. Anne said sternly, pointing at the ground in front of the couch.

Marina and Ryan, used to the routine, sat criss crossed on the ground. Peabody and Sherman both also reluctantly sat on the ground in fear of being berated.

"This obviously is not what we wanted for our family gathering on Thanksgiving. Most of us had said things we did not mean and have done actions we are not proud of." Ms. Anne began. "However, I want to put that all behind us, forget about blaming anyone, and simply forgive and forget. Is that a deal?"

Everyone nodded their heads and shifted their eyes to see each other's reactions.

"Good. Mom, shall you begin?" She asked looking over to the rocking chair.

"Yes, I will. Marina, I am very sorry that I have hurt you. That certainly was not my intention and I love you very much." Her grandmother said.

"I know, I love you too. You're forgiven. I am sorry for dropping the plate." Marina said, looking down at her hands. She didn't want to say she was sorry, but she knew that her mother and father were just trying to keep peace.

"Marina, you are forgiven." Mr. Robin said. "Now go say bye to your grandmother. You too Ryan."

Both Marina and Ryan kissed their grandmother's cheek and wished her a safe trip home. With that she thanked Mr. and Mrs. Goodwin for her meal and left.

The stress upon the whole household eventually faded and everyone sighed.

"Man, sometimes the holidays suck." Ryan blurted out.

Marina laughed lightly. "Tell me about it."

"Do you guys want to play some board games?" Ryan asked.

"Yes! Let's play apples to apples!" Marina said cheerfully and hopped up to get the game out of Ryan's room.

After rummaging through his closet, Marina found a few games her and Ryan used to play when they were younger. She walked into the living room with five boxes in her hands.

"As you can tell, we have a lovely variety of games. We have apples to apples, my personal favorite. Sorry, Clue, Headbandz, monopoly."

The rest of the night was filled with laughter and good wholesome fun. Peabody and Sherman would laugh at the competitive bickering between the siblings and at Marina's poor attempts at guessing what object she was in Headbandz. Who would of thought that a night so awful could turn into such a memorable happy one?

 **(Yo, so this chapter is rather short. But hey, I have a nice long chapter planned for the next update. Brace yourself its gonna be adorable. Thanks for reading, and I hope everyone has a wonderful thanksgiving.)**


	10. Chapter 10

Thanksgiving was over and despite having a good end to her night, Marina was still shaken up from the whole debacle with her grandmother. She decided it would be best for her mental help to leave her parent's house. Marina, Peabody, and Sherman packed their things and put their bags into Marina's car.

"I'm really sorry Gram ruined the rest of vacation." Ryan said as Marina began to get into her car.

"It's alright." Marina replied and pursed her lips. "Maybe you can fly up to New York for Christmas! It would be a lot of fun." Marina smirked.

"Oh yeah, right." Ryan said sarcastically.

Marina playfully punched him on the arm. "Seriously man! What do you think?"

"Yeah, it would be pretty cool to hang out with you in the big city." He said with a smile.

Marina gave him another playful smirk and closed the car door. Peabody and Sherman were already in the car so she started the engine. "I will see you then." She said as she reached her hand through the window and poked her brother's arm. She quickly began to roll up the window. "Gotcha last!" Marina laughed as she saw her brother give her a glare as she drove out of the driveway.

The trip back to New York was lengthy as there was a lot of holiday traffic. Half way through the journey, Peabody noticed that Marina was beginning to look and act extremely tired. They switched seats, leaving Marina the passenger, and she fell asleep peacefully. Peabody smiled at Marina's relaxed breathing and calm expression. Seeing her going through so much during the weekend, he was grateful she was finally able to be in peace.

When they finally arrived to New York city both Marina and Sherman were fast asleep. Unsure about what Marina was planning to do when they arrived home he decided to just head to his own home. He pulled up to the parking garage for the industries and parked Marina's car.

He looked over to Marina once again and reluctantly went to wake her up. "Marina, we are home. You need to wake up." He said softly as he gently shook her.

She abruptly awoke and made a small moaning noise as she stretched. "Oh, wow. I am sorry I made you drive so long." She said with a scratchy voice.

"It's no problem, I could tell you were tired." He whispered, trying not to wake Sherman. "Also, I wasn't sure where you were wanting to go after we got home. So, I just went to my penthouse."

"Oh, that's fine..." She said softly. "Erm...Peabody?"

"Yes?"

"May I stay at your house for the night? I'm really tired and I don't feel safe driving home so drowsy." She asked sheepishly, fidgeting with her sweatshirt.

Peabody smiled warmly. "Of course you can, Marina."

They both proceed to empty the car and grabbed their things. Marina carried her own duffle bag and Sherman's luggage. Peabody held Sherman in one arm and carried his own luggage in the other.

When they walked into the lobby of the Industries the light caused Sherman to open his eyes slightly, only to fall back asleep. Marina took off his glasses and affectionately ran her fingers through his hair. They walked into the elevator and made their way up to the penthouse. Peabody dressed Sherman into his pajamas and placed him in his bed.

Peabody walked back into the living area to see Marina sitting on the couch fidgeting with her fingers.

"Where could I get changed?" Marina asked quietly.

"Oh, well. You could go into the restroom if that is ok." He replied.

Marina nodded and grabbed her things before Peabody led her to the restroom. When she walked into the bathroom, she gasped in awe. Really, she shouldn't be surprised since the penthouse was so extravagant. Still, she couldn't not be in shock when she realized the restroom was the size of her bedroom, maybe larger. She quickly got changed into her pajamas and stuffed her other clothes into her duffle bag.

Walking back into the living room, she saw Peabody sitting on the couch. She gave him a smile and sat next to him.

"So where do you want me to sleep? I am comfortable being anywhere." She asked with a tired sigh.

Peabody thought for minute. He didn't want to force her to sleep on the couch since they were rather hard and leather, not soft and comfortable like the one at her home. However he wasn't sure if it was wrong to ask her to sleep in his bed. It was a king size, large enough for them to sleep at some distance apart. _It's fine, Peabody. Friends can share beds. There is nothing wrong with that._ He cleared his throat slightly. "I suppose you wouldn't mind sleeping in my room, correct?"

Marina seemed slightly shocked. "I-uh...You don't have to do that."

"No it is quite alright. Unless you are uncomfortable, of course."

"No it's not that, it's just-" Marina closed snapped her mouth shut. "Yeah we can share a room."

"Splendid. I suppose we should head off to bed now."

"Yes, please." Marina yawned. "I am exhausted."

The two of them headed to Peabody's room. Peabody went to get changed into his own pajamas, leaving Marina to just stand awkwardly waiting for him to come back. Finally he returned wearing a sweatshirt and flannel pajama pants. Marina smiled at his cozy appearance since he usually wore formal attire. Both crawling into bed Marina took one end, closest to a window, and Peabody took the other. They were facing with their backs to each other.

"G'night...Hector." Marina said in a playful tone.

Peabody chuckled. "Good night, Marina."

On Monday Marina headed to work. Usually she would be dreading her day due to Ms. Adams, but thankfully to her new promotion to being Peabody's personal assistant, she didn't have to worry about her. She wasn't completely sure where Peabody wanted her to go to begin working, but she just figured that heading to the penthouse would work fine.

Once she got into the industries she took the usual trip up the elevator and to the penthouse. When she arrived she saw Peabody sitting on the couch with a bunch of paper work scattered amongst the coffee table and couch.

"Hello, Peabody!" Marina said in a chipper voice.

His head shot up to see Marina standing in front of the coffee table.

"Good morning Marina. How are you?" He asked.

"Doing fine. Is there anything you want me to do?"

"Oh, yes. May you run this paperwork down to the fourth floor?" He handed her a packet of papers.

Marina felt her heart skip a beat. The fourth floor, that's where Ms. Adams works. She bit her lip and eventually agreed. Turning on her heel she made her way to the elevator.

Her heart was racing as she thought of every possible way to avoid her former boss. Once she got to the fourth floor she ran into Ms. Adams. _Speak of the devil._

Marina took a sharp intake of breath when Ms. Adams made eye contact with her.

"H-hello Ms. Adams." She greeted shakily.

"Don't 'hello' me. Where the heck have you been?" Ms. Adams asked angrily.

Marina gave a confused look. _Has no one told her I have been promoted?_ "I, uhm. I don't work for you anymore."

Ms. Adams gave a cruel laugh. "Have you finally been fired?"

Marina shook her head. "No, I work for Mr. Peabody now. I am his personal assistant."

Now it was her turn to be confused. "How did you get promoted?"

"Mr. Peabody. He asked me to." She flashed the paperwork for emphasis. "He told me to take this down here."

The blonde haired woman snatched the paper out of Marina's hand. "I don't understand...How?"

Marina shrugged and walked back to the elevator, leaving Ms. Adams in a state of confusion.

When the doors of the elevator closed Marina let out a shaky sigh of relief. When she arrived back to the penthouse she flopped on the couch next to Peabody.

He gave her a weird look, obviously confused. "What's wrong?"

"Ran into Ms. Adams. But I think I played it off pretty well."

"That is good." He answered as he shuffled papers. He paused for a second, as if he was deciding if he should say something or not.

"Are you ok?"

"Yes, I'm fine. I was just thinking if I should ask you something..."

"Oh! Well what is it?" She asked with a crooked smile.

Peabody felt his heart flutter at her smile. "Well, a business partner of mine throws a grand Christmas party every year. I haven't gone since I adopted Sherman, but I was thinking that maybe-" His voice cracked slightly. He cleared his throat and continued talking. "Maybe you would like going with me?"

Marina blushed with a small grin. "I would love to. I am assuming it is a formal event, correct?"

"Extremely formal. It's very much like a ball. There is a large floor for dancing and it's very glamorous."

She let out a whistle. "Wow are you sure I am good enough to go to a party like that?" She asked playfully, but still serious.

"Of course! Why would you say that?"

"I was joking, calm down." She playfully nudged him.

Peabody only chuckled in response. He knew she wasn't joking but he left it alone.

"So when is the party?"

"The eleventh. You can meet me here at 6:30, the party starts at 7:00."

The rest of the day Marina was sent to run different reports and various other kinds of paperwork place to place. When the work day was over, Peabody and herself said their farewells and Marina went home.

When she got home Marina did her usual routine. Take a shower, change into pajamas, and screw around on the internet. She began to get giddy about the Christmas party that she was invited to. It was practically date, she was asked out on a fancy date. Letting out a squeal Marina covered her blushing face.

Around nine o'clock she went to her bed to fall asleep. Her stomach did flips from excitement. Thankfully she eventually fell asleep with a small smile on her face.

It was friday, officially a week before the Christmas party and Marina was over the moon. She hasn't gone shopping for a dress yet so she decided today was as good of a time as any. After work she grabbed her things and made her way downtown to go shopping. Marina made her way store to store looking at dresses.

Many dresses caught her eye but were either way out for her price range, or were 'not for her body type'. About an hour passed and she began to grow frustrated. At this point she decided that she was going to try on any dress regardless of the style or price. Friday was going to be a big night for her and she wanted it to be special. After trying on ten dresses she was about to give up. However, she decided to try on one more dress and was extremely satisfied. It wasn't what she would normally go for but she liked it and it made her feel good about herself. Checking out, she made her way back home.

The week seemed to go by at a snail's pace. Even though she got to see Peabody every single day, she was looking forward to having a nice evening with him. Being an extremely casual person, Marina was looking forward to dressing up and spending her night with someone she loved.

Finally, it was Friday and Marina was extremely excited. Peabody noticed her hyper behavior and chuckled at her jumpiness. It seemed as if she was hyped up on coffee or something.

When Peabody asked her to run some paper work to different employees she would leave and return at record speed.

It was almost the end of the work day and Marina was helping Peabody organize some paperwork.

"So you still want me to come around here at 6:30?" Marina asked as she shuffled through some papers.

Peabody perked up and looked at Marina. "Oh, yes of course. 6:30 is perfect."

"Cool. Anyways, it's quittin' time. I will see ya later." She gave him a coy smile.

Peabody felt a chill go down his spine. _That smile._ "Y-yes. I will see you later this evening. Goodbye, Marina."

Marina saluted him with two fingers, winked, and made her way into the elevator. The doors closed, and she was gone.

Peabody let out a shaky sigh. He hated to admit it to himself, but he was nervous for tonight. The very thought of dancing with Marina made his stomach do flips and his heart pound. He didn't want to think that he had fallen in love with someone in a mere short month. However, at the way she made him feel, he knew that's what was happening. Running his hand through his hair he let out another sigh in attempt to calm down.

6:30 seemed to take forever. Who knew two hours could be so painful? Peabody met Sherman's baby sitter, was able to make small talk with her, and get changed into his tux in a matter of 45 minutes. 5:25, still over an hour until Marina arrived.

Peabody began pacing throughout the penthouse. He would play the piano, read a few chapters in the book he has been reading, and simply sit on the couch. Sherman took notice to his father's odd behavior and decided to confront him.

"Mr. Peabody, what's wrong? You have been acting weird since Ms. Marina left." Sherman asked curiously as he sat next to his father.

"Nothing is really wrong, Sherman. Just nervous I suppose."

" _You're_ nervous?" Sherman asked with a shocked expression.

Peabody chuckled at his boys surprise. "Yes, Sherman I am nervous."

"But why? You have known Ms. Marina for over a month now!"

"Well, my boy sometimes when you really like someone you can get nervous-"

"You _do_ like her! I knew it! Even my friends said that you liked her!" Sherman gasped and proceeded to tease Peabody in a sing song voice.

Laughing, he shook his head at his son. "Yes, I like Ms. Marina. I guess I am just nervous because I am not sure if she likes me."

"Why don't you ask her?"

"It's not that easy Sherman. But don't worry about it." He rubbed his boys hair affectionately, earning a smile from Sherman. "Hurry along to the kitchen, I prepared some quick meals for you. Marina should be here soon."

Sherman did so, and his baby sitter followed. Peabody sat alone in the living area, waiting for the the familiar _ding_ of the elevator. Sure enough, a few minutes later the elevator signaled someone's arrival and Marina rounded the corner wearing a long white coat that was right above her knees.

"Hey, sorry I would show you my dress but it's freezing out and my dress is strapless." Marina said, looking down at her feet as she walked into the living area. When she looked up, Peabody was standing up off the couch and walked towards her. She felt her ears and cheeks burn at the sight of Peabody in tux. He looked _very_ handsome. She bit her lip. "You look very nice tonight."

Peabody averted his gaze and cleared his throat. "Thank you Marina. You look very lovely this evening as well."

"You haven't even seen my dress silly!"

"You look beautiful everyday, anyways." He responded confidently.

Marina's eyes widened with shock. _Did he really just say that?_ She barely squeaked out a "Thank you." as she covered her blushing face with her hands.

The couple walked towards the elevator and made their way down to the lobby. Walking outside, they were met with a gust of wind. Marina instinctively moved closer to Peabody for warmth. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and led her to his car in the parking garage. They hopped in and made their way to the location the party was being held. There were many cars and seemed extremely extravagant. Two grand christmas trees sat on either side of the large double doors leading into the main hall. Stepping out of the car, Marina felt herself to begin getting extremely anxious. Her hands began to shake like a leaf. When Peabody rounded the car, he took notice to her state and locked arms with her and strode towards the door. He looked down at her, giving her a smirk. Marina felt herself shudder, not from the anxiety this time.

As they walked up to the large doors a young man took Marina's coat to hang in the back. It was at that moment that Peabody got to see Marina's dress. It was red, much like the red bow tie he frequently wore. The dress seemed to shine like silk and hugged her curves and hips. Right below her hips the dress flared slightly right above her knee, causing the dress to swirl with every step she took. His eyes raked up and down her body to be able to take in her beauty. Her hips, her legs, her thighs, her eyes, her...everything. _How could she think she wasn't beautiful?_ He knew that he had fallen for her, and he fell _hard._

Marina took notice to Peabody's staring and felt her heart jump. She walked towards him and locked arms once again. He tensed at her touch, every single touch sent a shock through him. His heart pounded and he gulped.

"Are you feeling ok?" Marina asked.

"I am better than ok. I am wonderful. You genuinely took my breath away."

Marina gasped slightly and looked up at him at with her sparkling grey eyes. Peabody bit his lip and locked eyes with hers. They walked into the main ball room, arms linked. The room was decorated with wreaths and many christmas lights. Like Peabody said there was a large ball floor with many pairs already dancing on it. An orchestra was playing Christmas carols elegantly.

Peabody spotted his business partner sitting at a table and began to walk towards him. Their arms still linked, Marina was forced to go along.

"Good evening Mr. Rhodes." Peabody said as he shook Mr. Rhodes' hand.

"Mr. Peabody! It's great to see you!" He greeted with a large smile. He turned to face Marina. "Who is this lovely young lady?"

Marina partially hid behind Peabody's back. Her heart began pounding and gripped his arm. She never considered that she would actually have to talk to people. She didn't want to be an embarrassment, though. Taking a gulp and a deep breath she forced herself to talk. "I-I am Marina, sir. Marina Goodwin."

"She is my..." Peabody clamped his mouth shut. What was he to her? Did she feel the same way about him as he felt for her?

Marina noticed Peabody's loss of words and answered for him. "Assistant. I am his personal assistant."

"Yes, she is my assistant." He added quickly, slightly disappointed.

"Well may I say you look lovely this evening, miss." Mr. Rhodes said as he gently took Marina's hand and kissed it.

"Thank you sir." Marina said timidly.

"You're welcome." Mr. Rhodes said with a smile. "Why don't you two go enjoy yourselves. It is a party, after all."

"Yeah! C'mon Peabody let's go dance!" Marina cheered and dragged Peabody towards the ball floor. "A fair warning, I can't dance. But I have always wanted to dance with someone."

"It's really quite simple, Marina. All you have to do is make a box with your feet." Peabody said as he got closer to Marina.

"I remember that. My school made us learn how to do dances in middle school. But where do I put my hands?" She held up her hands and wiggled her fingers for emphasis.

"Well..." Peabody began but simply closed his mouth and showed her. He put Marina's hand in his own, and led her other hand to set on his shoulder. Finally, he gently placed his own hand on her hip. He lightly pulled her forward so that her body was pressed against his. He felt her heart pound against his chest.

Slowly, they began to take steps to the pace of the music. Marina would trip up a few times but eventually got the hang of it. Once she became more comfortable Peabody would spin her, causing her dress to fly up slightly.

They danced to a few fast paced songs, Marina would twirl and sway her hips smiling all the while. Soon, the orchestra began to play the song 'Silent Night'. Marina sighed and wrapped her arms around Peabody's neck. He wrapped his arms around her waist and rested his hands on the small of her back. Marina began to hum to the tune of the song causing Peabody to sigh peacefully. He found her voice so comforting and the fact he was able to hold her close just added to the comfort.

He smiled as he felt her nuzzle into his chest. As the song ended she looked up to face him. His heart pounded, her eyes were practically glittering and her cheeks were rosy. He felt his face getting closer to hers, he felt dizzy and his heart practically began jumping out of his chest. Marina began leaning in as well and closed her eyes. Their lips brushed and Marina felt a shiver go down her back. Peabody used his arms to push her closer to himself and brought her into a kiss. The kiss was short but seemed to last an eternity. When they pulled away they caught their breath and stared lovingly into each other's eyes.

"I..." Marina squeaked out. "I love you."

Biting his lip, Peabody went to kiss her forehead. "I love you too."

Still at the table, Mr. Rhodes looked at the pair with a sly smile. "Just a 'personal assistant' huh?" He chuckled.

 **(Hey so I made this one very romantic. I am pretty happy with it so I hope you guys enjoy!)**


	11. Chapter 11

**(Hey guys! I am sorry that it has been forever since I have updated. I haven't been feeling very motivated. I already know what I am going to type, but it was just a matter of typing it. Sorry...I have been going through a depressive episode. Oh, by the way. This will be the last chapter, but do not fret. You will be able to see more of Marina in future stories.)**

It was Christmas Eve, snow was softly falling across the city as the buildings dazzled with lights. Marina, Peabody, and Sherman were sitting in the living area. They were all clad in their PJ's and sat cuddled to together as they comfortably stared at the glittering Christmas tree as they listened to carols playing on Marina's phone.

Marina nestled her head into the crook of Peabody's neck and gave a soft sigh. She felt so content with Sherman snuggled up to her side and Peabody's arm wrapped around her and resting on her hip.

Sherman stirred and turned to look up at his father. "Mr. Peabody can we each open up one gift tonight? Pleeeeeease?~" He begged with a puppy dog face. Marina giggled at Sherman's begging and Peabody's unamused face, one eyebrow raised.

"I don't know, Sherman. I thi-" The genius was cut off by Marina lightly punching his arm.

"Oh c'mon Hector. Let the kid open up a gift. My brother and I used to open up a gift on Christmas eve! Think of it as a new tradition." She said with a small smirk.

"Yeah Mr. Peabody! Listen to your _girlfriend_." Sherman teased.

Peabody tensed up as a small blush sneaked up across his face. Yes, it was official, Marina and Peabody were a couple. However, it still did catch him off guard being called out on his relationship. Not that he was embarrassed of his significant other. It just gave him a rush of adrenaline knowing that such a beautiful woman was dating him.

"Well, alright. I supposed you may open one before you head to bed." Peabody agreed in defeat. He still smiled as Sherman's face lit up with excitement.

He immediately ran up to a very large, flat, rectangular shaped gift. It had blue wrapping paper with silver snowflakes and a big silver bow. The gift had a tag written in messy handwriting. _"To: Sherman From: Marina"_

"I have been wondering what this gift since it was put underneath the tree!" Sherman said as he bounced on his toes in excitement. "So can I open it?" He asked, his hands hovering above the wrapping.

Both Marina and Peabody chuckled. "Yes, Sherman, you can open it." Marina said with a smile.

Sherman didn't hesitate to rip into the present, revealing brilliant colors. Once the paper was completely removed, Sherman looked down at the gift in front of him in awe. "Wooah..." He breathed as he lightly ran his hand over the painting in awe. The painting was of many stars and constellations. The sky was made of deep blues,purples,and black,swirling together, similar to Vincent Van Gogh's _Starry Night._ Many constellations were depicted as well as other various stars splashed across the sky. Some glitter was lightly placed on almost each and everyone of the stars, causing the stars to shine.

Marina giggled at Sherman's reaction. Sherman looked up at Marina in shock. "Did you make this?"

Marina nodded. "Uh huh! You told me that you really liked space and stars. I was feeling really inspired one night and I couldn't sleep. So I decided to paint something for you. I hope you like it, a pair of my jeans are covered in paint now."

Sherman ran and tackle hugged Marina. "I love it! Thank you mom!" Sherman's breath caught in his throat and he felt his heart speed up. He quickly let go of Marina. "I mean, I uh."

Marina was shocked and wide eyed but quickly busted out into a huge smile. She grabbed Sherman and gave him a tight hug. "I am glad you love it, sweetie."

Sherman nodded and yawned. Marina glanced over to Peabody. "Should we put him to bed?" She asked softly. Peabody glanced down at Sherman cuddled into Marina's chest and smiled warmly. He nodded and stood up off of the couch, followed by Marina. They both walked down to Sherman's room. Marina went in and walked to Sherman's bed. She gently placed him on his back and covered him in his covers and tucked him in snuggly. Sherman nuzzled into his pillow and sighed in contentment.

Peabody walked up behind Marina and wrapped his arms around her waist, and placed his chin on her shoulder. Sherman barely opened up his eyes to see Marina and Peabody looking down lovingly at him. He lightly smiled knowing his father was happy with someone and they both loved him.

Walking out of Sherman's room Peabody closed the door behind him. Marina rubbed her eyes and let out a small yawn. "Maybe we should head to bed too." She said in a small voice. Peabody nodded in agreement and ran his fingers through his hair. The couple made it to Peabody's bed room.

Hopping into bed Marina snuggled into the soft blankets and pillows on the large bed. Peabody took off his glasses and climbed into bed, lying closely next to Marina. They both faced each other and smiled.

"You know you have the most beautiful eyes?" Marina asked softly as she lightly caressed Peabody's face. A small smile graced his lips at her touch. He cupped her hand and leaned into her touch.

Marina snuggled into Peabody's chest and wrapped an arm around him, locking her hand with his. She placed a few kisses on his neck as she lightly rubbed the back of his hand with her thumb. Peabody shivered at the sensation but melted into her touch.

In a matter of no time they both fell into a peaceful sleep. They each had a light smile on their face, happy with their unexpected love.


End file.
